Primary schools in Delhi will be closed from Saturday as air quality worsens, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said at a press conference on Friday. Outdoor activities would be limited for high school students. This comes a day after schools in the neighboring city of Noida were told to conduct online classes by November 8. Hours later, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai told a briefing that 50 percent of government employees would work from home. He said a similar advisory was issued for private offices. According to him, the entry of trucks into the city – except for those transporting basic services – is already prohibited.
A six-member team of senior officials has been set up to monitor the implementation of restrictions on anti-pollution activities, he pointed out, adding that the revenue commissioners have been asked to prepare a plan for staggered timing of markets and offices. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government is also considering introducing a rationing measure for vehicles in the national capital on odd and even numbers, Kejriwal said earlier in the day. “We are taking all steps to control the pollution. Meanwhile, we are closing all primary schools in Delhi from tomorrow until the situation improves. Also, outdoor activities for all classes above Class 5 would be banned,” the Delhi Chief Minister said.
During his briefing, Kejriwal also spoke about BJP leader Adesh Kumar Gupta’s concerns. “I saw in the morning that he was talking about his grandson. I want to assure him that his grandson is like my grandson. We will take urgent measures,” he stressed. “We will try to ensure that no children have any health problems,” he said. Speaking to reporters with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann by his side, Kejriwal said, “We take responsibility for the farm fires in Punjab. But we also want the Center to come forward and help,” the AAP chief said.
Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has expressed concern over rising air pollution in Delhi-NCR. In a statement, the NHRC said it was not satisfied with the steps taken and said, “The NHRC is not satisfied with the various measures taken so far to address the problem of air pollution in Delhi NCR and has requested the Chief Secretaries of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi to attended it in person or in hybrid mode on November 10 for a detailed discussion in this regard. The Chief Secretaries of these States are expected to inform the Commission positively of the steps taken by their respective Governments to stop stubble burning in their regions within a week of this discussion.”
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