Delhi Govt Had One Year To Fight Pollution. Here Is Everything They Promised To Do - And Didn't

24 hours after Diwali pollution turned Delhi into a gas chamber, almost. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had no clue where he was. Well, he did - kind of.

Formally detained by the police. No idea where they are taking me.

¡ª Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) November 2, 2016

He was raking up the OROP, an old issue in which he had no stake - even as his own city, to whom he had pledged loyalty, had a particulate matter count so high the scale couldn't measure it. This, despite some easily achievable commitments to Delhi to clean up its air - and maybe clean up his reputation.

Here's the many ways the CM has let down his own city's air.

1. Odd-Even

Whenever the Delhi government felt like it (it seemed), they launched 15 days of car-rationing, thereby attempting to reduce automobile. Held only twice across 2016 (till date) , the scheme saw cars with even-numbered license plates permitted to ply on the roads. But for many reasons, the project was a failure.

Odd-Even was a failure, despite the Delhi government reportedly defending it as a success - and then wiping it off their list of agendas.

Here's proof:
Since The Odd-Even Scheme Began, Delhi Pollution Has Actually Gone Up By 50% #Shocking
Air Quality Worsens In Delhi After Odd-Even Ends. New Study Calls For A Permanent Solution
Pollution Control Board Says Odd-Even Scheme Hasn't Reduced Vehicular Pollution
#OddEven Is Not The Solution For Delhi's Air, Pollution Rises 23% During Second Phase Of Scheme

And for a scheme that won them global fame (and they claim 'worked'), here's what Delhi government is doing with it:
As Winter Approaches And Pollution Rises, Delhi Govt Yet To Have A Proper 'Odd-Even' Plan

2. Air purifiers, mist fountain

rackcdn.com

72 hours before Diwali hit, the Delhi government announced wind purification units, mist fountains and a virtual chimney at five major traffic intersections. This three-tier setup can reduce carbon monoxide and particulate emission by 40%-60% in 20-30 metre radius during peak hours of traffic, government sources claimed. Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain said the government, working with National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) and IIT (Bombay) can set up the entire system within 45 days.

The timing: late.
The Delhi government had an entire year to do something - anything - to fight pollution. They didn't. Now, just in time to be late for Diwali's poisonous aftermath and 30 days to finishing the year, they're taking action - or at least making the right noises.
Meanwhile, this is what China has already done.
China To Deploy World's Biggest Air Purifier In Beijing To Fight Heavy Smog

3. Vaccum cleaning Delhi's roads

In December 2015, the government proposed vacuum cleaning and mechanically sweeping clean the city's roads to fight airborne dust, a major pollutant. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal even inaugurated a greening drive and vacuum cleaning on April 1 and, tweeted that all PWD roads will be mechanically swept in "two months".

Nothing happened. No follow ups from Kejriwal - the matter simply disappeared. A comprehensive IIT-Kanpur study on Delhi's air quality had identified road dust as the biggest source of suspended particulate matter in the city's air, pegging it at 38 percent. Around 1,280 km of the city's total road length comes under the local Public Works Department as it is responsible only for roads which are more than 60-feet wide.

4. Cleaning up construction site dust

PM 10 (coarse pollution particles) levels are worsened by plumes of dust generated from hundreds of construction sites left across Delhi.

The National Green Tribunal had asked Delhi to follow the environment ministry's construction guidelines, but even recent as April, nothing was being done to prevent dust pollution at infrastructure projects. Well, there was 'framing of laws'

This, despite the Delhi government talking about 'weekly checks' on some construction projects. Construction sites have even been fined, and the Delhi government made a crore. But when was the last time you saw a single stretch of road in Delhi (Lutyens Delhi doesn't count), which didn't have an open mountain of dust and construction debris just being blown around in the wind?

As Kejriwal now courts Punjab, maybe he should tell farmers there to stop burning crops, because the smoke is pouring into Delhi and choking us.