Delhi Air Quality Remains 'Poor' For Third Consecutive Day

by Manisha Das

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

The overall air quality in Delhi continued to remain in the 'poor' category for the third straight day on Saturday morning, as per the SAFAR-India.

New Delhi, October 28: The overall air quality in Delhi continued to remain in the 'poor' category for the third straight day on Saturday morning, as per the SAFAR-India.

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR)-India, the overall air quality in the national capital is in the 'poor' category with an AQI of 286. After being in the 'moderate' category with an AQI of 190 on Wednesday, the city's AQI has been in the 'poor' category since then with 256 on Thursday and 249 on Friday.

In the Delhi University area and Pusa, the quality of air was recorded as 'very poor' and 'poor' with AQI at 316 and 201, respectively at 7 am today.

The quality of air in the IIT Delhi region also remained in the poor category with an AQI of 276. The quality of air at the Airport (T3) was also in the poor category, with an AQI of 293. The Mathura Road recorded 165 AQI, coming under the moderate category.

Meanwhile, Noida recorded an AQI of 255 (poor) and Gurugram 200 (moderate).

Air Quality Index (AQI) is a tool for effective communication of air quality status to people in terms, which are easy to understand. It transforms complex air quality data of various pollutants into a single number (index value), nomenclature, and colour.

The AQI from 0 to 100 is considered good, while from 100 to 200 it is moderate, from 200 to 300 it is poor, and from 300 to 400 it is said to be very poor and from 400 to 500 or above it is considered as severe.
Earlier on Friday, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said that a 15-point winter action plan is being implemented one by one to curb the pollution.

"Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had earlier announced a 15-point winter action plan to curb the pollution caused by vehicles, biomass burning, dust, etc. Now this winter action plan is being implemented on the ground one by one to reduce the pollution in the national capital," Rai told ANI.
The Delhi Minister said that since one of the major causes of the pollution is vehicles, they have started the 'Red Light on, Gaadi off' campaign on Thursday.

"Now the data says that in AQI the level of Particulate matter (PM) 10 is decreasing and that of PM2.5 is increasing. This means that pollution caused by vehicles and biomass burning is increasing. For this, the 'Red Light on, Gaadi off' campaign has been started since yesterday," the Delhi Minister said.

"This campaign started from the Income Tax Office (ITO) on Thursday. It will be conducted at Barakhamba Road and other locations in the city. On November 2, this campaign will be held in 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi. On November 3, the campaign will be promoted in schools via eco clubs," he added.

Rai said that through this campaign, they are trying to control the unnecessary burning of fuel and the spreading of pollution in the national capital.

To mitigate pollution, water was sprinkled through an anti-smog gun in the Anand Vihar area on Thursday.

(ANI)

Also Read: National News

Argus News is hiring!

Seeking highly motivated professionals.

APPLY NOW

Uttarakhand: All 41 Trapped Workers Rescued From Silkyara Tunnel

by Hemanta Pande

Uttarkashi, Nov 28: All the 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand since November 12, have been successfully rescued, offficials said on Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met the workers who have been rescued along with Union Minister of State General (Retd) VK Singh.

A portion of the tunnel caved in on November 12, the debris falling in the 60-metre stretch on the Silkyara side of the tunnel, trapping 41 labourers inside the under-construction structure.

"The exact time of breakthrough was 7:05 pm. Uttarakhand CM, Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways and Civil Aviation Gen VK Singh are present there," says Harpal Singh, Project Head, Zoji-la Tunnel.

CM Dhami highly appreciated the morale and courage of the workers and personnel engaged in the rescue operation.
Meanwhile, NDRF and SDRF personnel entered the tunnel for rescue to rescue the workers.

Earlier today, Uttarakhand CM and other officials reached the Silkyara tunnel rescue site.

Read: National News

A portion of the tunnel caved in on November 12, the debris falling in the 60-metre stretch on the Silkyara side of the tunnel, trapping 41 labourers inside the under-construction structure. (ANI)

Uttarkashi: First Worker Evacuated From Silkyara Tunnel; Rescue Operation Underway

by Hemanta Pande

Uttarkashi, Nov 28: After 17 days of the marathon operation, the first worker out of 41 workers has been evacuated from the Silkyara tunnel and efforts to bring out the remaining trapped workers are underway.

As the rescue operations enter the final stage, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the work of pipe pushing inside the Silkyara tunnel where the efforts to bring out 41 trapped workers has been done across the debris.

"There has been a great success in the ongoing rescue operation in the Silkyara Tunnel, the work of pipe pushing has been done across the debris. Now preparations have been started to evacuate the workers safely," Uttarakhand CM posted on X (formerly Twitter).

As the pipe has reached the place where the workers are trapped, the lights are being installed inside the pipeline so that the workers do not face any problems in the rescue operation. The rescue operation of workers may start soon.

Meanwhile, NDRF and SDRF personnel enter inside the tunnel for rescue, the operation to rescue the workers is about to start in a few minutes.

A worker involved in the rescue operation says, "The situation is good. Four to five people from NDRF have gone inside. The process of rescuing the workers has already begun. We are taking stretchers inside to bring the trapped workers outside..."

"The rescue work has been completed and the trapped workers will start coming out in the next 15-20 minutes. NDRF teams will pull out the workers now. It will take around half an hour to rescue all the 41 trapped workers. There are no hurdles now," a worker involved in the rescue operation.

Read: National News

Earlier today, Uttarakhand CM and other officials reached the Silkyara tunnel rescue site.

A portion of the tunnel caved in on November 12, the debris falling in the 60-metre stretch on the Silkyara side of the tunnel, trapping 41 labourers inside the under-construction structure. (ANI)

Chamber Of Trade And Industry Advocates Caste Census For Taxpayers In Letter To PM Modi

by Hemanta Pande

New Delhi, Nov 28: The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) in Delhi has called for a comprehensive caste census of taxpayers, emphasising the need for transparency and accountability in economic contributions.

CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal has penned a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the government to conduct a caste survey to shed light on the economic dynamics influenced by different sections of society.

Goyal said, "Along with the caste survey, data should also be collected as to how much tax people of which caste pay to the government. In the letter written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it has been said that people should know which caste people play an important role in running the economy. Who pays the most taxes and does the government make any policy keeping their interests in mind?"

Read: Karnataka Govt Has No Authority To Conduct Caste Census: Union Minister

Goyal emphasised the importance of understanding the tax contributions from various castes, asserting that such data would unveil the role different communities play in driving the economy.

The letter argues that releasing a caste-wise breakdown of taxpayers would enable citizens to comprehend which caste groups contribute significantly to the national exchequer.

This, in turn, could inform government policies tailored to address the interests of high-contributing castes.

Acknowledging the government's possession of extensive data related to income tax and GST, the CTI suggests that unveiling the list of taxpayers based on caste would provide insights into the financial contributions of different communities.

The CTI proposal encourages the government to formulate policies, insurance schemes, pensions, and medical facilities based on the revenue generated by each caste.

Goyal stated, "Being a business organisation, we are making such a demand. There is a discussion going on in the trading community. Thousands of traders have agreed to this demand of CTI".

Brijesh Goyal clarified that the CTI's demand stems from its role as a business organisation, reflecting ongoing discussions within the trading community.

Read: National News

Thousands of traders have expressed support for the CTI's proposal, highlighting a growing consensus within the business sector regarding the need for a caste-wise breakdown of taxpayer data.