Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva on Saturday said as the monsoon is drawing to a close, the anxiety and concern of Delhiites about winter pollution are increasing.  In the past decade, due to Arvind Kejriwal government’s criminal negligence, winter pollution in Delhi has escalated to such an extent that millions suffer from respiratory issues every year, and many even die unexpectedly, he said.

Making these assertions in a news conference, Sachdeva said last year saw the worst pollution levels in Delhi’s history.Based on the experience of black pollution in the past decade, especially last year, Delhiites hoped that the Kejriwal government would wake up in 2024, but it is regrettable that Delhi’s Environment Minister Gopal Rai is merely playing with letters to evade responsibility, he said.

The Delhi BJP President stated that winter pollution is a very serious issue that requires serious long-term measures to combat. It is necessary to work on a policy plan with neighbouring state governments to combat winter pollution, but it is unfortunate that Environment Minister Gopal Rai wants to wash his hands off the responsibility of winter pollution by playing with letters with the Centre and presenting some rehearsed points through press conferences.

Rai has publicly disclosed two letters written to the Centre in the last fortnight, but he has not disclosed any letter that he might have written to the Punjab government regarding stubble burning, the biggest contributor to winter pollution in Delhi, Sachdeva said.

He said Delhiites want to know from Gopal Rai, who emphasized artificial rain in his letter to the Centre to reduce increasing winter pollution, in which cities artificial rain has helped reduce pollution levels as high as in Delhi.

Many environmental experts have already deemed the suggestion of artificial rain unnecessary and ineffective.

Shri Sachdeva said that the first step in fighting pollution is to streamline the working of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, which is almost defunct today. It is surprising that almost half the positions in the DPCC are vacant, which raises questions about how much work the committee can actually do. Gopal Rai should explain why more than half of the positions in the DPCC have been vacant for years.

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee has consistently condemned the Delhi government’s symbolic anti-pollution measures, such as the Rs. 24 crore waste on the Connaught Place smog tower and the Real-Time Source Apportionment Report that came without scientific evidence after spending Rs. 13 crores, he said.

Sachdeva questioned why Gopal Rai has not taken concrete steps using the Rs. 38 crore special anti-pollution fund provided by the Centre and more than Rs. 700 crore of the environment cess fund, along with the special stubble management fund.

The Delhi BJP President said the Arvind Kejriwal government should stop playing politics in the name of environmental protection and take concrete anti-pollution measures, starting with calling an all-party meeting with the Punjab government’s Chief Minister on winter pollution preparations.