Will ensure city AQI doesn’t fall below ‘moderate’ level: Iqbal Singh Chahal

Speaking to reporters, Chahal said stringent action is being taken against entities who could be seen flouting dust mitigation norms. “Be it government entities or private enterprises, if anybody is seen flouting the norms, then action will be taken against them. We have also issued notice to the authorities carrying out construction of the Bullet Train Project in BKC. We have maintained our stand stating that if they fail to adhere to these norms, then a stop-work notice will be issued to them,” said the municipal commissioner.

The Indian Express had published a series, ‘Death by Breath’ from October 20, which reported on various issues pertaining to the rise in air pollution in Mumbai.

Following this, the BMC issued air pollution mitigation guidelines which stated that the MPCB will monitor emissions from various private and government industries located in and around Mumbai. Civic officials said that over the past two weeks, close to 1,000 intimation letters have been sent to several infra projects asking them to adhere to the norms. Civic sources also stated that 96 stop-work notices have been issued to various contractors in Mumbai.

“Mumbai started to see serious issue of air pollution from the winter of 2022. Prior to this, the issue didn’t exist. Earlier, it was assumed that this was a temporary issue. However, now studies are showing that this issue is going to stay and we have to adapt to dynamic measures throughout the year in order to keep things under control,” he said.

Chahal said the air pollution guidelines clearly state that if the vehicles carrying debris as well as other construction material are not covered properly, “We will be seizing the vehicle for the season. Penalties haven’t been imposed as it enables the violators to get away easily. In a much stricter move, we will simply impound the vehicles and we have also informed the transport commissioner about the same.” he said.

In its series, Express had also pointed out how rampant burning of garbage is also contributing to the worsening AQI of Mumbai. Chahal on Thursday said that at present night-patrolling teams have been deployed in the landfills in Mumbai to avert fire incidents.

A spokesperson from National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSCRL), which is executing the bullet train project, said that at present all the dust mitigation measures are followed at the spot. “We have procured mist guns that are operational on site and raw material and all waste material are being covered with tarpaulin. Green net is provided to avoid dust emissions and a close monitoring is also being carried out using CCTV cameras,” he said.

Meanwhile, experts have called for acceleration of

the transition to Electric Vehicles to address growing pollution.

“The deteriorating air quality in NCR, Mumbai and several other cities across the country underscores the urgent need to accelerate EV adoption. With zero tailpipe emissions, EVs provide the perfect solution to address India’s rising AQI problem,” said Shailesh Chandra, Managing Director, Tata Passenger Electric Mobility on the deteriorating AQI across several cities.