A Petition has been filed in the National Green Tribunal challenging the implementation of the 'odd even scheme' under the 7 point 'Parali Pradushan Action Plan' of the AAP led Delhi Govt. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in a tweet dated 13th September had stated that the pollution in Delhi was down by 25%, and Delhi is the only city where the pollution is going down. In a following tweet, he...
A Petition has been filed in the National Green Tribunal challenging the implementation of the 'odd even scheme' under the 7 point 'Parali Pradushan Action Plan' of the AAP led Delhi Govt.
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in a tweet dated 13th September had stated that the pollution in Delhi was down by 25%, and Delhi is the only city where the pollution is going down. In a following tweet, he announced a '7 Point Parali Pradushan Action Plan' to combat the issue of smog in the city. The implementation of the 'odd even policy' was a part of the action plan.
The petition claims that the Delhi Govt. has ignored the scientific studies conducted by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), which showed no positive impact of the odd even scheme on the pollution levels of the city. The petitioners claim that the sole ground for implementation of the scheme was based on a study done by 'foreigners'.
A day before making the announcement, the chief minister met with experts associated with the Energy Policy Institute of University of Chicago, who presented a study on which they had collaborated with researchers from the Harvard University. The Government announced the findings, which suggested that the intensity of PM 2.5 in Delhi's air in 2016 had reduced by around 14%-16% when the odd even scheme was in place.
The plea mentions an 'assessment of impact' of the 'odd even scheme' on the air quality of Delhi, conducted by the CPCB, found that the ambient air quality of Delhi was more deteriorated than usual. A reference was also made to an order where a report submitted on behalf of DPCC showed that PM 2.5 levels were much higher during the implementation of the odd even scheme.
The petitioners claim that the Delhi government's decision was 'unfortunate and unpleasant', as it chose to ignore the findings of the scientific studies conducted by the top two institutes of the country, and chose to rely on studies done by foreign institutes instead.
Further, it was also stated that such a preference for a foreign study has given a wrong message to the community of Indian scientists and downgraded the reputation of the said institutes.
The plea calls for quashing of the 'Parali Pradushan Plan - 2019' insofar as it concerns the implementation of the 'odd even scheme'. The petitioners have also prayed for the constitution of a committee of senior scientists from the Union of India, CPCB and DPCC, so that it may check the veracity of the study done by foreign countries.
It was also prayed that the AAP-led Delhi Govt. submits a factual report on the steps taken by the government to reduce the menace of air pollution in the city.
Click here to download the Petition