National Green Tribunal to seek report on Delhi air pollution

New Delhi: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday will hear a case related to the deteriorating quality of air in Delhi which has been designated as being in the "severe" category post Diwali.

Taking suo motu cognisance of the matter, the tribunal on Thursday directed Delhi Chief Secretary KK Sharma to hold a meeting urgently with all the concerned authorities.

The chief secretary was told to file a status report by Friday.

NGT's directive came while hearing a case related to the rising menace of Chikungunya and Dengue.

During the hearing the Delhi government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) had argued that the presence of mosquitoes declined drastically after Diwali.

"Have you done anything to prevent children from going to school, did you give advisory to public. The people have the right to breathe fresh air," the tribunal observed while reprimanding the Delhi Government over its lacklustre response towards tackling air pollution.

For the past three days, Delhiites have been inhaling copious amounts of particulate matter (PM) - both 2.5 micrometers and 10 micrometers - composed of dust, dirt, smoke, chemicals, etc., a deadly combination which enters the blood stream through one's lungs and causes cancer.

As per System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), levels of Particulate Matter (PM) 10 levels reached a record 500 mark on Wednesday.

The city witnessed low visibility and smog throughout Wednesday evening and night. The reasons for this are a drop in wind speed and rise in humidity in the atmosphere. Such severe pollution levels can cause breathing problems, lung and heart diseases among many other ailments.