70 lakh litres of water sprinkled in 36 days in Delhi's pollution hotspots

The drive began on October 17 following orders from the Delhi government to check the dust pollution in the national capital, Delhi Fire Service officials said.
 Pollutions levels breached the emergency threshold twice this month  as a grey apocalyptic smog enveloped the city for days. (File Photo | EPS)
 Pollutions levels breached the emergency threshold twice this month  as a grey apocalyptic smog enveloped the city for days. (File Photo | EPS)

NEW DELHI: Over 70 lakh litres of water was sprinkled at 13 pollution hotspots in the past 36 days by the Delhi Fire Service (DFS) to hold down dust as a measure to improve the deteriorating air quality in the city, officials said on Sunday.

The drive began on October 17 following orders from the Delhi government to check the dust pollution in the national capital, they said. According to the Fire Department, about two lakh litres of water is being sprinkled every day by its personnel at 13 places declared as pollution hotspots by the Delhi government.

The places are Jahangirpuri, Narela, Ashok Vihar, Vivek Vihar, Dwarka, Mundka, Rohini, Wazirpur, Okhla, Bawana, Anand Vihar, Punjabi Bagh and R K Puram. A total of 15 fire tenders have been pressed into service to sprinkle water at the identified hotspots and around 45 fire personnel have been deployed for the task, said an senior DFS official.

“On an average, two lakh litres of water is sprinkled every day. It has been an ongoing drive ever since the directions were issued from the Delhi government. The exercise began on October 17 and since then our personnel have sprinkled more than 70 lakh litres of water across 13 identified hotspots to curb dust pollution,” the official said.

The exercise is being carried out for nearly two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening every day, the official said. Pollutions levels breached the emergency threshold twice this month  as a grey apocalyptic smog enveloped the city for days.

‘23 anti-smog guns, 150 tankers deployed’

The Public Works Department (PWD) has installed 23 anti-smog guns at key intersections and construction sites of the national capital and deployed 150 tankers to sprinkle water and reduce dust pollution in the city, said the Environment Minister Gopal Rai  on Sunday.

“To reduce pollution in Delhi, PWD officials have been instructed to sprinkle water on the trees, roads and on the construction sites across Delhi to combat dust pollution. The PWD has also deployed water tankers to sprinkle water,” he said. The PWD has also appointed nodal officers to monitor the situation.

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