Delhi, Punjab CM spar over stubble burning as air pollution levels in Delhi skyrocket

New Delhi: As air pollution levels in the national capital reached alarming levels on Thursday, a war of words broke out between Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh. The spat has made headlines day after the Delhi CM blamed neighbouring states for failing to check instances of stubble burning.

Earlier this month, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener dismissed the findings of System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) that asserted how stubble burning in neighbouring states contributed only 10 per cent to the overall air pollution in Delhi. Kejriwal had termed the report by the central agency which comes under the ambit of the Ministry of Earth Science as 'misleading'.

Responding to his claims and protests by AAP workers outside Punjab Bhawan in the national capital, Punjab CM Amarinder Singh on Wednesday said that the move is an "obvious political stunt". Singh even went as far as to call the Delhi CM a "shameless liar". Air pollution in Delhi is directly related to rampant construction activity, widespread industrialisation and total mismanagement of the city traffic, the Punjab CM was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, a senior officer with the Haryana police told media outlets on Wednesday that as many as 17 FIRs have been filed in connection with stubble burning cases reported from Fatehabad district in the state. While Fatehabad witnessed 144 cases of stubble burning on October 27 and 28, the practice was spotted in Sirsa, Kurukshetra, Karnal and Kaithal among other districts.

In an effort to curb instances of stubble burning, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) adopted more than 100 villages in Punjab and Haryana this year. The aim of the initiative was to enable zero crop residue burning and the adopted villagers are located in Ludhiana, Barnala and Patiala districts in Punjab along with Sirsa, Rohtak and Fatehabad districts in Haryana.

Data of air pollution levels in Delhi have shown a rise in the concentration of PM2.5 particles in comparison with PM10 particles. Research has shown that PM2.5 is more harmful owing to its smaller size. These pollutant particles not only reduce visibility but also harm the human body. AQI levels on Thursday crossed an alarming 427, entering the category of 'severe' air quality. Pollution levels witnessed a spike in the aftermath of the festival of Diwali where firecrackers were burst across NCR despite warnings by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Supreme Court of India.