No response from Centre on artificial rain plan yet, says Rai as air quality dips

Delhi Environment Minister seeks approval for cloud seeding as emergency measure to control pollution, BJP seeks clarification.

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Sunday said the Centre has not yet responded to his government’s letters seeking approval for cloud seeding to induce artificial rain as an emergency measure to control pollution if air quality plummets to hazardous levels in winter.

The Minister’s remark came as air quality veered into the “poor” category on Sunday, a day after Dasara celebrations saw the bursting of firecrackers across the national capital.

Meanwhile, the BJP sought a clarification from Mr. Rai over the preparations to tackle the challenge posed to air quality in the winter months, with its Delhi unit chief Virendra Sachdeva holding farm fires in Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-ruled Punjab responsible for the Capital’s pollution problem.

According to a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) bulletin, the reading on the air quality index (AQI) stood at 224 at 4 p.m. on Sunday, up from 155 a day earlier.

An AQI reading between 201 and 300 is termed ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 ‘severe’.

Unfavourable meteorological conditions, combined with stubble burning and the bursting of firecrackers on festivals contribute to hazardous air quality levels in Delhi and other parts of north India in the winter months.

Earlier, Mr. Rai had rolled out a Winter Action Plan, with measures including drone monitoring, artificial rain, and the constitution of a special task force to combat air pollution.