Just 41% of 1,646 complaints on major polluting sources resolved in Delhi-NCR since October 7

NEW DELHI: Only 41% of a total of 1,646 complaints, relating to major polluting sources, were resolved by different government agencies in Delhi-NCR since October 7 despite repeated reminders by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), shows the latest information with the environment ministry.

The data also shows how active farm fire events have been taking place in Punjab and Haryana even as the CPCB has been communicating to the states “on daily basis” requesting them to curb incidents of stubble burning.

Though both states need to do more, Punjab turned out to be a bigger culprit recording an increase of 7% in such events this year as on Sunday compared to the corresponding period in 2018. Haryana, on the other hand, showed a decline of 17% as compared to last year.

Senior officials are learnt to have discussed these findings at a high-level meeting, chaired by P K Mishra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister, on Monday. The meeting was held to review the measures taken by Punjab, Haryana and Delhi to tackle air pollution.

Mishra sought to know details of additional measures taken by Punjab and Haryana to check fresh cases of stubble burning in the last 24 hours and emphasised on the need to “establish mechanism for immediate action”.

The 1,646 complaints, lodged with different agencies in Delhi-NCR, were related to major local polluting sources such as construction and demolition activities, open dumping of garbage, unpaved road dust and open burning of garbage in Delhi and six NCR towns - Noida, Gurugram, Faridabad , Meerut, Sonepat and Rohtak.

These complaints were made in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the basis of field feedback received from 46 teams of the CPCB on pollution activities in various location in those city/towns. The central pollution watchdog had deployed these teams on October 7.

A far as farm fire events are concerned, four districts each in both Punjab and Haryana have substantially contributed to the total incidents of stubble burning. In Punjab, Tarn Taran districts has so far recorded the highest number of such incidents (2,614) followed by Sangrur (2,571), Firozpur (2,565) and Patiala (2,226). All these four districts together contributed to 44% of total incidents of stubble burning in the state.

Similarly, Kaithal in Haryana recorded highest number of stubble burning incidents (914) in the state followed by Karnal (893), Kurukshetra (694) and Fatehabad (612). These four districts together contributed to 71% of total incidents of stubble burning in the state.

“Both these states reported such incidents despite the Union environment ministry writing thrice - October 11, October 16 and October 21 - to chief secretaries of both Punjab and Haryana and informing them about the considerable rise in the farm fire incidents in various districts,” said an official - a clear indication that there is no dearth of directions, but all the states lacked enforcement on the ground in varying degree.