New Delhi, 14 November (H.S.): Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav has directed the immediate sealing of 191 polluting industries in Delhi-NCR and warned that criminal action would be initiated against concerned transport department officials if Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras are not installed by November 30.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on Saturday reviewed pollution-control measures being implemented by Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. During the meeting, Yadav directed the states to move beyond policy announcements and ensure coordinated, time-bound action on the ground to tackle air pollution.

He called for secretary-level officers to be assigned responsibility for seven cities in Haryana, four in Uttar Pradesh and four in Rajasthan. These officers will conduct field inspections and submit weekly reports to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). The Commission was also asked to issue notices to officials found negligent in carrying out their responsibilities.

Yadav directed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to immediately seal 191 industrial units that had not even placed orders for installing the prescribed air pollution control equipment. He also stressed the strict implementation of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) and the respective winter action plans.

Reviewing measures to control road dust, the Minister noted that 3,221 kilometres of roads had been renovated against the overall target of 5,480 kilometres. He directed authorities to operate mechanical road-sweeping machines in two shifts and take corrective measures at 233 identified traffic congestion hotspots across the NCR.

He also instructed the authorities to install a Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) tolling system at 154 entry points along Delhi's borders by December 31.

To curb vehicular emissions, Yadav called for expediting the transition plan to replace older trucks and buses with BS-VI-compliant, CNG and electric vehicles by 2028.

On industrial pollution, officials informed the meeting that 2,298 of the 2,345 targeted industrial units had been connected to Online Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (OCEMS). The remaining 47 units had been shut down or sealed.

The Minister also directed urban local bodies to address the shortfall of 6,747 tonnes per day in solid waste processing capacity, ensure a complete ban on open waste burning and accelerate the disposal of legacy waste at the Okhla, Ghazipur, Bhalswa and Bandhwari landfill sites.

He further called for the identification of pollution hotspots in major cities and the preparation of dedicated action plans to address them. Emphasising the importance of technology-driven monitoring, he urged authorities to strengthen the use of digital tools to track compliance and ensure effective implementation of pollution-control measures.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar