New Delhi, Sep 13 (UNI) With an aim to reduce air pollution in Delhi, the Odd-Even scheme is all set to be back in the national capital from November 4-15, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said here on Friday.
While addressing the media here, Mr Kejriwal said this will be a part of the winter action plan in view of the air quality in the city which is bad during winters.
The action plan will have measures such as Pollution Free Diwali, Odd-Even Policy, Pollution Masks, Preventing open burning/violation of construction dust rules, Hotspot Action Plan, Dust Pollution Control and Delhi Tree Challenge.
As per the CM , the action plan has backing of the real stakeholders, the people of Delhi.
Mr Kejriwal said suggestions from people via email were received and more than 1200 suggestions came in, while he also met RWAs & experts too.
Mr Kejriwal on Friday announced the 'Parali Pradushan' and 'winter Action Plans' to combat air pollution during coming months to tackle incoming crop burning smoke from Punjab and Haryana, caused by burning of crop stubble. He had shared data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) that showed PM 2.5 concentration in Delhi declining 25 per cent over the last three years.
He also said, “Every ten or eleven months of the year, Delhi’s air sees a marked improvement. But every November, because of the smoke that comes from Punjab and Haryana, Delhi turns into a gas chamber. The Centre and these states are trying to prevent this from happening. But until that happens, we must take steps to protect ourselves from the toxic air created due to crop burning.”

He said that the Delhi government is procuring masks on a large scale,and accordingly will make them available to people for use.
In a fresh move , he said the Delhi government will organise a community Diwali laser show on the eve of Diwali to make it smoke free , also the Supreme Court has prohibited the bursting of crackers in Delhi.
Using crackers to celebrate Diwali will exacerbate the problem of air pollution, he said.
He said entry to the event will be free of cost , and the details of the venue will be announced in the coming days.
Commenting on the government’s preparedness to deal with enforcement of measures to tackle pollution, he said, “We are also setting up a war room to look into complaints and grievances. Schools will be prepared for pollution through awareness campaigns.”
Sharing government's long term vision to battle pollution he said, “Already 4,000 buses are being procured. Soon we will notify the bus aggregator policy, under which the private sector will be encouraged to invest in luxury buses, so people use these buses instead of their private vehicles.”
Speaking about the Delhi government’s ambitious route rationalisation program, he said, “We are undertaking a massive route rationalisation program for all our bus routes. We are trying to efficiently manage routes to ensure maximum frequency of buses on the busier routes. This will take two-three years to implement. Combined with an enhanced bus fleet, this will improve bus frequency substantially.”

“Metro Phase IV is already being implemented. For last mile connectivity, small electric vehicles will be used. Bus stands will be changed over time. Bus arrival status will soon be available at every bus shelter. In the next one month, we will also notify the Electric Vehicle Policy, considered one of the most progressive policies in the country. 1,000 electric buses are being purchased. In the future, we must shift towards electric vehicles.”
Meanwhile, the city hoppers have mixed feelings for government's initiative as many of them use public transport for commuting to work while several others commute by private vehicles or cabs.
However, one thing regarding what the people have a common opinion is that during the time of ODD EVEN , the traffic situation was a little better in the capital, they said.
Some also suggested that the government should also look for more effective measures and control activities that are majorly responsible and are root causes of air pollution that affect the air.
Mr Kejriwal on Thursday met leading experts in the field of environment and sustainability for suggestions on making a strong 'Winter Air Pollution Action Plan' for Delhi.
The experts supported the efficacy of odd-even policy in Delhi as well as the use of pollution masks as effective short-term pollution mitigation measures that can be taken by the Delhi Government.
Dr Ken Lee, the Executive Director of EPIC (Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago), India, in the meeting with Mr Kejriwal presented research and data on the impact of first Odd-Even Policy experiment of Delhi Government in January 2016.
UNI APS SY 1931