The Delhi government is working on a multi-department action plan to tackle the high levels of pollution in the region, The Times of Indiareported on Monday. The proposal will be incorporated in the 2018-’19 Delhi Budget that will be presented in March.
Billed as Delhi’s first “green Budget”, the discussions started last week. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia (pictured above) wrote to the departments of environment, power, industries, transport and public works and asked them to formulate action plans, according to The Hindu. Sisodia said pollution was one of the “topmost concerns affecting quality of life in Delhi” and asked the departments to come up with plans that can be implemented in the the next two years.
Intra-department meetings began on February 2 and will be held till February 14 to discuss the proposals, after which the best blueprints will be shortlisted at a Budget meeting on February 15.
The deputy chief minister told his colleagues to consult studies on air pollution in Delhi, including a report that the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur had authored in 2016. “Scientific studies on the effects of air pollution on children in Delhi conclude with certainty that for many, their health will be compromised for the rest of their lives,” Sisodia said.
