Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking to set up a committee headed by the PM himself, including Chief Ministers of north Indian States as members, with a defined mandate to propose and oversee implementation of long-term solutions to fight hazardous levels of air pollution in the National Capital Region and other parts of north India.
Mr. Hooda said that he would be bringing in a private members’ bill called ‘Right to Clean Air Bill’ in the winter session of Parliament for which he has sought suggestions from all citizens via social media. The MP said he is willing to act as the postman between the people and the Parliament on the issue so that the opinion of every citizen can be incorporated.
Political blame games
Mr. Hooda, the only Opposition MP from the 19 Lok Sabha seats falling in the NCR, said there was a need to rise above political blame-games and find a lasting solution to this problem for the sake of the next generation. All the State governments and the government of India, together, through the sought committee should propose a solid, workable plan with adequate budget allocation.
He said the approach so far has been of “ad hocism and passing the buck”. “Sometimes, we resort to banning firecrackers, and sometimes odd even. The NGT steps in on some occasions and the States and political parties start blaming each other. “This needs to stop as this is a shared and joint responsibility,” he said, adding that the poor farmer should not be made a scapegoat.
“If we can have the Right to Food Act and Right to Education Act, why can’t we have a Right to Clean Air Act,” Mr. Hooda said in a brief interaction with media persons in New Delhi.
He also said that “we need to start acting now to ensure that we don’t have the same problem next year”. “As you would be aware, the problem has reached alarming levels. While a level of 100 is stated to be a health hazard the world over, we are living with levels seven to eight times this limit. The problem starts around Diwali and worsen in the winter months and the people of region have to live with extremely poor air quality,” Mr. Hooda has stated in his letter to the Prime Minister.
Call to come together
He said since other countries had faced similar problems in the past but managed to get the problem under control, we can defeat air pollution if we come together to fight the problem.
Air pollution has turned out to be a major health hazard in the National Capital Region, including Gurugram and Faridabad in Haryana. The air quality has deteriorated in two districts over the past several years and the problem aggravates around Diwali due to stubble burning.
The major hospitals in the two cities also register 20-30% increase in cases of asthma, cough-related illnesses and other respiratory diseases in October-November due to stubble burning.
