Delhi Govt Forms Panel to Monitor Pollution Levels, Levy Penalties on Violators

The Delhi government formed a panel with special powers to monitor and supplement the pollution control efforts in the city on December 3. The panel, comprising of senior officials from key departments, IITs and environmental scientists, will be led by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, reported PTI.

Chairing an inter-departmental meeting at the Delhi Secretariat, Gupta said her government was treating pollution as an "emergency mission" and would not tolerate any lapse by agencies responsible for maintaining air quality and cleanliness standards in the capital.

Delhi's air quality was recorded in the "very poor" category on December 3 with an AQI of 342, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

She instructed the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to issue challans and impose heavy penalties on departments failing to comply with dust-control and road-maintenance requirements.

The chief minister expressed displeasure over reports of unauthorised road-cutting and poor road restoration by some government bodies, directing officials to file FIRs against departments found engaged in such violations.

"No agency, government or private, will be spared in the fight against pollution," she said.

The Delhi Development Authority has been asked to maintain cleanliness on its roads, remove waste from vacant land and expedite the transfer of its markets to MCD.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has been instructed to swiftly repair damaged stretches beneath its elevated corridors and implement stronger dust-mitigation practices.

The chief minister said clean, green and dust-free roads were the most crucial component of the city's anti-pollution strategy and that delays in field action would not be accepted.

Crackdown on Violations

Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, who attended the meeting along with the chief secretary and officials from PWD, MCD, DDA, Delhi Metro, DSIIDC, NBCC, DUSIB and other departments, said the 311 Green App was being strengthened as the central platform for monitoring dust hotspots, potholes and brown areas.

A six-month action plan is underway to implement dust-free measures in identified zones across the city, he said.

Sirsa said strict action would be taken against vehicles below BS-IV norms and that e-autos would be prioritised to improve last-mile connectivity and promote Metro usage.

Mist-spray dust mitigation will now be expanded citywide, he told PTI.

In addition, the MCD has been directed to make its 8,000-km road network pothole-free and dust-free, with 1,000 vacuum-based litter pickers and 100 mechanical road sweepers to be deployed within 45 days. Most of Delhi's landfill sites are also planned to be cleared in the coming months, officials said.

All construction sites have been asked to ensure fencing and comply with pollution-control norms within 48 hours.

Centre Warns Industries

Meanwhile, the Centre ordered Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) authorities on December 3 to crack down on highly polluting industries that miss the December 31 deadline to install real-time emission monitoring and air pollution control devices.

Union environment, forest and climate change minister Bhupender Yadav announced on December 3, 2025 that the Centre has directed Delhi-NCR states to finalise their action plans 2026 air pollution control plans within this month.

Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) chairperson Vir Vikram Yadav confirmed to PTI that 2,254 highly polluting industries in Delhi-NCR have not yet installed and connected their Online Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (OCEMS) to the CPCB server.

"Strict action, including closure, will be taken against industries that do not meet the December 31 deadline," Yadav told PTI.

All medium and large red-category units in the food and food processing, textile and metal processing sectors in Delhi-NCR are required to install OCEMS for real-time monitoring of emissions, stack gases and industrial operations.

The Centre has also instructed industries to install air pollution control devices by December 31, failing which action will be taken.

In order to prevent stubble burning during the upcoming paddy harvesting season, Punjab and Haryana have been asked to create an action plan this year, Rajesh Verma, Chairperson of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) told PTI. A meeting in this regard will be held soon in Chandigarh, he added.

An expert committee on vehicle pollution will also be established by the CAQM.

(With inputs from PTI.)