NEW DELHI: With winter approaching, the Delhi government has stepped up preparations to tackle air pollution, announcing a series of preventive measures under its Winter Action Plan for 2026-27.Environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said the government is shifting from a reactive approach to preventive action, with departments assigned clear targets and timelines. The plan focuses on key pollution sources, including vehicular emissions, road dust, construction activities, industrial emissions, open burning and traffic hotspots.The government will strengthen the “No PUCC-No Fuel” campaign across 500 fuel stations and step up action against End-of-Life vehicles.Delhi’s public transport network will also be strengthened, with the government aiming to raise average daily Metro ridership from 65 lakh to 72 lakh and DTC ridership from 37 lakh to 42 lakh.To reduce peak-hour traffic, the government has also planned staggered office timings and a 50% work-from-home arrangement during the winter pollution period.MCD offices will operate from 8:30 am to 5 pm, while Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) offices will function from 10 am to 6:30 pm.According to news agency ANI, the government has also announced stricter curbs on construction-related activities. Dust-generating demolition and outdoor civil construction will be prohibited from November 1 to January 31, while a complete ban on construction and demolition activities will be enforced from December 10 to January 20.To improve monitoring, Delhi plans to increase its Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations from 47 to 60 and deploy 334 enforcement teams.An AI-enabled Command and Control Centre, along with cameras and geo-tagged monitoring, will be used to track pollution and violations more closely.Sirsa said tackling Delhi’s air pollution would require coordinated action across the NCR, as pollution does not remain confined to administrative boundaries.He also urged residents to use public transport, keep their Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates valid, avoid open burning and report pollution-related violations through the 311 helpline or the Green Delhi App.(With agency inputs)
