Amid concerns over the deteriorating air quality in the city, the Delhi Government has launched a series of anti-pollution measures, including an intensive drive for deep cleaning of roads to remove dust, with the deployment of 200 maintenance vans to clean, repair and maintain Delhi’s roads spanning 1,400 kilometres across the Capital.
The ambitious campaign, led by the Public Works Department (PWD), aims to reduce road dust and improve air quality.
The campaign includes removal of debris from road surfaces, filling potholes on priority, repairing and upgrading road signage, and carrying out other essential maintenance tasks.
According to Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, teams have been formed to monitor polluting industrial units and vehicles, while focused work continues to normalise identified pollution ‘hotspots’.
Coordinated efforts are being undertaken across departments to bring pollution under control, she added.
The Government has launched the drive for sweeping of the roads and removal of debris lying on pavements, with a focus to improve air quality. Strict orders have been issued to officials in this regard, said a statement from the CMO on Wednesday.
The Government has launched a series of concrete measures amid rising pollution levels. As part of this initiative, the road cleaning operation has been launched covering all the roads under the Public Works Department (PWD) by deploying 200 maintenance vans, it said.
Debris lying on road surface and sidewalks will also be removed along with filling up potholes, repairing of road signages and other maintenance work under the drive.
The Chief Minister said that strict guidelines have been laid down for the campaign, with individual accountability fixed for each officer.
The Chief Minister emphasised that the Delhi Government is fully committed to pollution control and will not tolerate any negligence in this regard.
Separate maintenance vans have been deployed for pruning and trimming trees along PWD roads, the statement said.
The maintenance vans will ensure deep cleaning of at least 200 metres of roads every day. These vans will be under direct charge of a junior or assistance engineer for ensuring accountability of the work.
The work is progressing rapidly across 1,400 kilometres of PWD roads in the Capital with removal of dust from the right of ways, cleaning of kerb channels and bell mouths, and debris removal, the CM said.
Coordination with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is being ensured for addressing cases of regular dumping, cleaning and repair of footpaths, filling of potholes, improvement of road signage, and maintenance of street lights and exposed wiring, she said.
The upkeep of trees along the PWD roads is also being prioritised for which 60 maintenance vans have been deployed for pruning and other activities, she added. Weekly progress reviews are being conducted by senior officers and the entire work will be completed within 45 days. Strict action will be taken against officers responsible for missing the targets, the statement said.
