To curb pollution, Delhi requests meeting with NCR states

New Delhi, [India] May 2 (ANI): In order to control air pollution in the capital, Delhi Cabinet's Environment minister Imran Hussain wrote a letter to Union minister Harsh Vardhan and sought a meeting of the environment ministers of NCR states.

This comes after a recently published WHO report listed Delhi among the 14 most-polluted cities in India.

"Collectively as a team, the environment ministers of various states under your guidance have been making efforts to curb air pollution, but it is clear from the latest global data that we need an urgent and concrete nationwide plan to effectively counter this growing threat, which poses major health challenge to the people of our country," said the Delhi Cabinet minister in his letter.

He mentioned that as air pollution didn't recognise geographical boundaries, Delhi experienced episodic instances of air pollution due to the prevalence of dusty conditions during April-May and burning of crop residue during October-November in the neighbouring states.

Hussain said that only with the help of neighbouring states would the problem of pollution be curbed.

"Needless to say, such phenomena can be effectively controlled by the active involvement of the neighbouring states surrounding Delhi," said the minister on the same.

Delhi is among the 14 Indian cities, which made its way into the list of 20 most-polluted cities in the world in terms of PM2.5 levels in 2016, according to the WHO report. (ANI)