NEW DELHI:  Several vacant Delhi Development Authority (DDA) plots at Narela and Alipur in north-west Delhi are being used for garbage dumping and burning by unauthorised industries or factories, worsening the pollution woes of the area, the Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) has found. Agreeing that the menace is rampant in the areas, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has now decided to deploy security guards at these unoccupied plots. 

People operating factories illegally from their homes or other non-conforming areas dump all kinds of waste, especially rubber and plastic, at the vacant plots and set it on fire during night hours. Toxic fumes from such waste can cause cancer and cardiovascular diseases. In a meeting with agencies and representatives from pollution hotspot areas such as Narela, Mundka, and Bawana, EPCA chairman Bhure Lal on Friday directed the DDA to ensure that this is stopped.

“We have already floated the tender for security guards who will be deployed round-the-clock in these plots,” said a DDA official, adding that the hiring will be done in a month. The Supreme Court-appointed committee also asked the DDA to identify vacant plots in Tigri and Mundka areas and to ensure they were not used for garbage burning.  It also lashed out at the Delhi Industries Department, the municipal corporations, and the DMRC, for garbage dumping and burning and traffic congestion that are worsening the air quality.

“Industrial areas of Bawana and Narela have mounds of waste lying,” Lal said as he came down heavily on the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC) for not monitoring day-to-day status of garbage accumulation. 

Lal asked the police to strictly regulate traffic and ensure its smooth passage. Road stretches in Sarai Rohilla, Anand Vihar, Zakhira Najafgarh Road, Soan Park, Azadpur Mandi were identified for heavy traffic congestion that are adding to air pollution.

Dubbing the traffic situation in west Delhi’s Peeragarhi “pathetic”, Lal told the police and other agencies that no traffic rules are being observed. “Illegal encroachment further adds to traffic woes in the capital. Guards need to be posted to ensure smooth passage of traffic,” he said. 

Cold day in Delhi under overcast skies
Overcast skies and dense fog marked a cold Friday in the national capital where more than 50 trains and a few flights got delayed due to the unfavourable weather condition. The minimum temperature was 7.1 degrees Celsius, normal for this time of the year, while the maximum settled at 18.4 degrees, a notch below the average.  

On Thursday, the minimum and maximum were recorded at 6.7 degrees and 20.5 degrees Celsius, respectively. As many as 55 trains were cancelled, 25 remained partially cancelled and at least 11 delayed due to low visibility in the morning. Most of the affected trains were behind their schedule by two-three hours. In Palam and Safdarjung, the visibility was zero and 400 metres at 5.30 am, and 50 and 400 metres at 8.30 am.