While the Delhi government marked World Environment Day on Monday with Ministers planting saplings everywhere from a butterfly park to a waste-water treatment plant, experts said the government’s environment action has been a mixed bag.
In the past year, Delhi has implemented policies like the Graded Response Action Plan and ordered the closure of the Badarpur thermal power plant during the winter to lower air pollution levels.
There have been new committees, new plans and a new regional approach to tackling air pollution — pushed by the intervention of the Supreme Court, the National Green Tribunal, the Lieutenant-Governor as well as the State government itself.
But, when it comes to larger, systemic changes, environmentalists said that Delhi has a lot more to do.
Badarpur power plant
“The Badarpur power plant was shut in the winter, there was action on trucks and there was also some work on addressing the landfill fires. But, when it comes to transportation — one of the biggest sources of pollution — major structural reform is required,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, an executive director of the Centre for Science and Environment.
The Delhi government had allocated funds for buying new buses to add to the Delhi Transport Corporation’s fleet, but it is yet to materialise, she added.
“It’s not just that we need more buses. With the existing fleet, the number of passengers has been going down. That also needs to be addressed. System integration between the DTC and the Metro and last-mile connectivity remains a problem,” Ms. Roychowdhury said.
Optimistic outlook
However, despite the problems, she added that she was optimistic about an improvement. “There is enough awareness about the problem. Now, we need awareness around the solutions,” she added.
For others, the momentum created by the Delhi government in the winter of 2015-16 with its odd-even scheme and other measures has died down.
“The government has to keep the momentum going. The good thing is that the awareness has spread to other parts of the country after Delhi took up the issue. But, there needs to be more action on clean energy,” said Sunil Dahiya, a campaigner with Greenpeace India.
‘Big setback’
He added that though the Badarpur plant was closed for a few months, it’s re-opening in April was seen as a “big setback”.
“The plant’s closure was symbolic for the fight against air pollution. Instead of starting it again, the government could have bought surplus power from the central grid. The huge potential of Delhi for rooftop solar energy has also not been harnessed,” said Mr. Dahiya.
