Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced on Monday that all diesel buses operating in Delhi-NCR that are coming from other states will not be allowed to enter after November 1 due to the city’s worsening air quality.
Environment Minister Gopal Rai said, “The Delhi government is working on all the parameters under the winter action plan. Last year, the AQI on October 29 was 397, and yesterday it was 325. So there has been an improvement. We are trying to improve it further. The next 15 days are very important, and we are preparing for them. All the industrial units in Delhi have been shifted from polluted fuel to natural gas. We have formed teams to monitor if anyone is using polluted fuel. The ‘Red Light on, Gaadi off’ campaign is voluntary. I appeal to the people of Delhi to turn off their vehicle’s engine when there is a red signal.”
He added that as of November 1, all outside-of-Delhi-NCR diesel buses will be required to switch to alternative fuels. Rai previously urged the Center to implement strict prohibitions on buses using poor diesel and to outlaw BS III and BS IV buses that travel through the National Capital Region (NCR) of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana. In line with the Delhi Government’s initiatives to combat vehicle pollution, the Minister carried out an unexpected inspection of the Kashmiri Gate ISBT for diesel buses arriving from the NCR states.