Departments Sit On Draft While Air Quality Gets As Bad As Beijing’s; No Check On Emissions

There is now mounting evidence that Delhi’s air quality is comparable to, if not worse than, Beijing’s notoriously poor air quality. But, the second-generation action plan for Delhi’s pollution-—drafted to deal with the deteriorating air quality after CNG introduction—doesn’t seem to have been finalized almost two years after it was prepared. All the government departments are still to give their response, and seem to be in no hurry to finalize the plan.

The National Green Tribunal on Monday issued notices to the Union urban development ministry, the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) and Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation taking cognizance of mind

The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) is set to implement a proposal to allow online approval of building plans.

Cities are creaking under their own weight. And heat. In Surat, for instance, parts of the city with dense concrete jungles swelter at temperatures 5 degrees higher than the city’s greener parts.

The Ghaziabad Development Authority plans to introduce a project that will enable the agency to track all construction activity in the city through satellite imagery.

NEW DELHI: Air pollution is the fifth largest killer in India taking 6.2 lakh lives per year and Delhi is among one of the five most critically polluted regions in the country, a study by a US-based health institute has claimed.

The other four most critically polluted regions in the country are Ghaziabad, Gwalior, West Singbhum district in Jharkhand and Raipur, according to the study.

New Delhi: Twenty-one people tested positive for swine flu on Sunday. Three cases each were reported from Safdarjung, Ram Manohar Lohia and Lok Nayak hospitals. Among private hospitals, Max Hospital in Saket, Apollo Hospital in Sarita Vihar and Fortis Vasant Kunj reported one case each.

A senior official in the state health department said at least seven patients were taking treatment at home. “One patient who was confirmed positive for swine flu got the tests done in Delhi and is admitted at Pushpanjali Crosslay Hospital in Ghaziabad,” said the official. “Three people have died in swine fluin Delhithis year,” he added.TheDelhi government has designated 22 hospitals, including five private ones, for treatment of swine flu.