New Delhi, Sept. 29 -- elhi's pollution-control strategy is set to move beyond major roads and seasonal measures, with the Cabinet approving 30 electric mechanical sweepers for smaller roads and a real-time system to track sources of PM2.5 and PM10.
At a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Tuesday, the government approved a grant to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for procuring 30 EV-based mechanical road sweeping machines (MRSMs). The machines will be deployed across around 609 km of smaller roads, covering 854 roads in 250 wards.
The 10-year cost of the mechanised cleaning initiative has been estimated at Rs 393.73 crore. The MCD will deploy and operate the machines on the ground, with the government saying the use of electric vehicles would ensure that the pollution-control exercise itself remains environmentally friendly. Gupta said, "The government is not looking at pollution merely as a problem that intensifies during winter, but is working continuously and scientifically on pollution sources throughout the year."
The second Cabinet decision involves developing a continuous, real-time source apportionment system for PM2.5 and PM10 in collaboration with IIT Delhi. The system will analyse the contribution of different pollution sources over a 24-hour period, including vehicular emissions, road dust and biomass burning.
As part of the project, the existing super site at Rouse Avenue will be reactivated, while the mobile laboratory will also be revived for targeted studies of pollution hotspots and local sources. The five-year collaboration with IIT Delhi is estimated to cost Rs 19.22 crore and will include a real-time dashboard, analytical reporting and capacity building for Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) officials.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.