Delhi pollution: LG Saxena writes to CM Atishi, suggests using Defence Volunteers for pollution mitigation

New Delhi: With the national capital facing 'very poor' air quality, Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena wrote a letter to Chief Minister Atishi on Thursday regarding Delhi's pollution, and called for using Civil Defence Volunteers (CDV) to help with pollution mitigation.
In the letter, LG Saxena raised the issue of not having enough machinery to tackle pollution, "DPCC informed about lack of adequate enforcement machinery which hampers their efficacy for various measures invoked by CAQM and the state government and other government agencies."
He further called for using CDVs from November 1 till end of February for pollution mitigation activities.
"I would therefore suggest that the Divisional Commissioner be advised to call out services of CDV's, specifically of those who were engaged as on 31st October 2023, for a duration of say four months and engage them for air pollution mitigation activities," the letter read.
He further raised serious concerns on the issue of CDV's volunteers too,
"At the same time, I had also raised the issue of their livelihood concerns and had asked the government to give it serious attention. I had underlined that CDVs who come from humble background need avenues of remunerative engagement. It was suggested that the government should address the issue of their engagement in a manner which is rational, legal and non-partisan and follows the reservation norms for SC, ST, OBC and EWS categories," read the letter.
Meanwhile, the air quality in Delhi has already plummeted to 'very poor' quality. According to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), the Air Quality Index (AQI) of 385 was recorded on Thursday morning.
Experts have pointed out that stubble burning, although is a serious issue that needs to be addressed, is not the only reason behind the air pollution in Delhi. Multiple other factors contribute to the menace causing pollution in the city.
The issue of the rise in air pollution contributed by stubble burning is a practice of burning crop residues on farm fields, leading to massive emissions of smoke, which is considered very hazardous for air quality.
According to experts, farmers resort to stubble burning, because the gap between the two harvests is very small, and the farmers lack the facility to deal with the issue.