Pollution? What Pollution? Sunrise in Delhi

Sunrise in Delhi
Is it time to celebrate Delhi once again?

Whether credit goes to Modi Ji or Kejriwal Ji, it is time to celebrate Delhi once again. In the last 10 years, I have never seen pollution levels so down. I don’t remember when I saw such clear and clean sunrise, rays individually making it to my plants and blessing them.

Yes, it hasn’t happened overnight, and there have been lot of steps which have been taken by both Central and Delhi governments to win this war. In the area where I currently stay, wind is pleasant, Sun is mild and birds are busy chirping away and looking out for watering holes.  Closest Air Quality Index shows all green, I am sure my area’s AQI is even better as it is inside and away from road traffic.

Sunrise is Delhi
Is Delhi Getting Better? (Image Courtesy AQICN.org)

As the fables go, a problem is half solved when one comes out of the state of denial and accepts the reality of it and decides to solve it. Massive monitoring mechanisms and quick action teams put  together to solve Delhi’s pollution problem are showing results. All stakeholders are now concerned. 50% done.

Both BJP at centre and AAP at state/UT level got the message that this is not helping their cause and got back to drawing boards and deep dived into intertwined departments and missing files. Better collection of garbage and disposal helped, so did the opening of ‘bypass roads’ to decongest Delhi from ‘through traffic’. Strict implementation of the ban on Diesel Gensets and constant uninterrupted electricity supply also did their bid.

Permanent shutting down of the Badarpur Thermal Power Plant has had its impact too. And of course as a city we are managing our landfills much better. Fire at landfills was a daily affair; multiple landfills, multiple fires had become the norm. Now you can see hardly any smoke coming out of landfills.

We are not done yet, it looks like today is an exception for city to be fairly clean, yes – it is for every stakeholder in Delhi to make sure they are not the ones adding to this mess.

Delhi Lives On!