With the worsening air quality in Delhi, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Sunday urged the residents of the national capital to use bicycles or buses to commute at least one day in a month to reduce the alarming levels of pollution.
“To reduce pollution, foremost responsibility lies with the government to make rules and regulations. Then the industrial sector and thirdly, we as individuals. Take out at least a day to travel via cycle or bus,” news agency ANI quoted Sisodia as saying.
“People can ride a cycle at least once a month to prevent pollution and save the environment for future generations,” he also said during a cycle rally at West Vinod Nagar, Patparganj as part of the Delhi government’s Raahgiri programme.
Delhi’s air quality on Sunday improved marginally as the air quality in the national capital reached the ”very poor” category with Air Quality Index (AQI) at 386 (overall), according to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).
Meanwhile, the pollution level in the National Capital Region (NCR), especially Noida and Gurugram, also remained worrisome. Noida reported AQI in the ”hazardous” category at 536, while the air quality in Gurugram was at the upper end of the ”severe” category at 423.
To tackle increasing air pollution levels in the national capital, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday announced a ”pollution lockdown” under which the schools would remain physically closed for a week from this Monday. Classes would continue virtually so that students don”t have to breathe in the polluted air.
