Delhi shamelessly flouts emergency measures even as city continues to choke on smog

A cloud of noxious smog had the national Capital in a stranglehold on Thursday, but promises of crunch-time action from authorities came a cropper with polluting activities such as construction work, transit of trucks and burning of waste on in full swing.

A visit to East Kidwai Nagar in south Delhi revealed a wall being erected at the site of a housing project and labourers bringing in building material. A little distance away, a pile of cement was waiting to be mixed with water.

A yellow JCB was getting ready to get on the job while tiles were being fitted in already constructed flats. Sand and cement were lying uncovered in brazen violation of strictures. Bricks and stones were also kept haphazardly.

A road was being constructed in another part of Kidwai Nagar. When asked, Iqbal, the labourer on duty, said, "We have no idea about any ban. We were not asked to stop work by our contractor. Work will go on."

Analysts point out that a jumble of agencies has led to poor or no implementation of the pollution-control measures announced by courts and the executive. While some of the bodies responsible for enforcing the rules report to the city's AAP government, others answer to the BJP-led Centre. The two political parties are bitter rivals.

Ask Dr Mohsin Wali, former physician to the President of India, and he said, "Don't call it pollution. Delhi is now a gas chamber. There's an unusual spike of complaints from patients of asthma and respiratory problems.

"Patients with high blood pressure and cardiac situation need to be extremely careful as it can prove disastrous for them."

Apart from private players, we also found government agencies such as the Delhi Jal Board and others digging pits and constructing concrete structures around the city. When confronted by our reporters, those involved in the projects claimed ignorance about any restrictions.

BHALSWA LANDFILLL FIRE

The smog travelling through northern India and blighting the lungs of Delhiites is steeped with deadly methane emanating largely from the city's garbage catching fire at the Bhalswa landfill. But this apparently has not caught the local administration's attention yet.

According to ragpickers, multiple fires at the waste dumping ground are a disaster in the making and the flames are expected to spread in the coming days.

"The garbage has caught fire in parts across the landfill. Even from outside, you can spot the flames. Despite a few visits by fire tenders, the situation has remained the same," said 13-year-old Jaidur Kumar, a ragpicker.

A similar situation triggered a spat last year when a Delhi government official accused the MCD of sabotaging the implementation of the odd-even car-rationing scheme. The administration has announced the return of the vehicular restrictions next week.

"At present, the air in Delhi is calm and lacks movement. The toxic fumes and spontaneous combustion erupting from rotting garbage hills are accumulated in the air Delhi is breathing," said environmentalist Anumita Roychowdhury.

IGNORANCE

The police and civic officials were also ineffective in stopping trucks from entering the city. Except for those carrying essential commodities, entry of heavy and medium-sized vehicles has been disallowed in Delhi till further orders.

Mail Today found that since Wednesday, trucks carrying construction material, and other goods that are not exempted, are still making their way into the Capital. Most of these vehicles were found crossing over from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

When police officials on duty at the Delhi Noida Direct (DND) flyway were asked about this laxity, they said, "If the UP police have not stopped them then how can we? There is no U-turn point on the entire stretch. If we stop them there and ask them to park at the roadside, it will lead to a traffic jam."

The rule was also being flouted at Kalindi Kunj, Mayur Vihar, Badarpur, Mehrauli, Anand Vihar, Ghazipur, and Narela.

TRUCK DRIVERS UNAWARE ABOUT BAN

When Mail Today spoke to the truck drivers, they said they were unaware about the ban. "Our employer has asked us to transport the material from Aligarh to Delhi. We didn't know that we are not supposed to enter the city," said a truck driver.

Delhi traffic police, the government's transport department and the municipal corporations have been asked to keep a vigil at all toll points to prevent entry of banned vehicles. "The trucks use diesel as fuel, which triggers heavy pollution in the Capital.

"They enter around 11pm to 5am and 11am to 4pm. During this time, dust pollution increases in city," said a transport department official.

The MCD staffers at toll booths on Delhi's border entry points also offered excuses.

"We are not authorised to stop any vehicle. We only collect the daily tariff and allow them to enter Delhi," said a worker at the MCD toll booth in Kalindi Kunj.