AAP: Air pollution concerns North India, not just Delhi-NCR

Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha on Sunday said that air pollution is not an issue only concerning Delhi but entire north India. "Air pollution is not only an issue for the national capital. It is a north India issue that calls for a north India solution. Central Board of Pollution Control (CBPC) has said that Varanasi is the most polluted city in the country as per air quality index," Chadha said at a press conference in Delhi. "Six of these states are in UP and the other four are in Haryana. Delhi did not even figure in the 10 cities with the most polluted air," he added.

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Five questions for Minister Javadekar

AAP leader Atishi Marlena, who was also addressing the media, said that level of air pollution in Delhi-NCR and the neighbouring states have slumped to dangerous levels. "There is not a corner in Punjab where stubble burning is not taking place," she said and raised five questions for Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar. "What has he done to prevent stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana since he took office? Why has he not called the State Environment Minister-level meeting of north India States? Why has he not called an emergency meeting for the affected states? When will a meeting be called in the matter?" she asked.

Marlena also questioned the central government over its plan of action to prevent a repeat of the situation next year. She urged Javadekar to respond to her questions. Prakash Javadekar had earlier slammed CM Arvind Kejriwal for "politicising" the issue and said it was "unfortunate" that he was indulging in a blame game.

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Severe Sunday

A thick blanket of smog engulfed several parts of Delhi on Sunday morning pushing its air pollution levels into hazardous territory. Visibility dropped significantly in the national capital as pollutants hovered in the atmosphere. Notably, for the first time in this season, the Air Quality Index (AQI) docked as high as 625 at 10 am despite light drizzles in the early hours. By afternoon, the AQI in neighbouring Ghaziabad's Indirapuram was recorded at 492 and in Raj Nagar at 480, according to CPBC data. Most regions in Delhi were in the 'severe plus' category.

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(With ANI inputs)