Ready to enforce complete lockdown to control local emissions, Delhi govt tells SC

NEW DELHI: The Delhi government on Monday informed that Supreme Court that it is ready to take serious step in order to tackle the severe air pollution in the capital city.

Although it was in the ''very poor'' category, Delhi reported an improvement in the air quality on Sunday recording a 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) of 330 against 437 the previous day as emissions from farm fires in Haryana and Punjab dropped significantly. The AQI was 471 on Friday, the worst this season so far.

The city’s pollution was a crisis situation, the judges said , sharply pulling up the city government for "lame excuses" and "passing the buck", and insisting on immediate steps as the Supreme Court resumed its hearing on Monday.

A lockdown will have only a limited impact, the Arvind Kejriwal government said in its affidavit, adding that similar restrictions will be needed for the neighbouring areas of Delhi too, which come under the National Capital Region (NCR).

Hearing the case on Saturday, Chief Justice NV Ramana had asked the central government to come up with an emergency plan to tackle the dangerous smog, calling the situation "very serious".

Earlier, the government on Saturday announced that schools will be shut for a week, starting Monday and government offices will operate in work from home.