Sunday most polluted day after Diwali: Kejriwal, India Inc gear up to fight Delhi's pollution

A list of emergency measures were announced by the Delhi govt on Sunday and India Inc has pitched in too

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday announced a list of emergency measures to be enforced by the state government to combat the national capital's dangerous levels of pollution.

Sunday was the most polluted day after Diwali in the capital with New Delhi recording \particulate matter (PM) 2.5 concentration of 999.99 at 12.45am — 16.5 times higher than WHO's prescribed norm, said a Times of India report, citing data from data Central Pollution Control Board.

According to media reports, Kejriwal held an emergency meeting to take stock of the situation. 

Further, companies and corporates have also stepped in to protect their employees from Delhi's toxic air, according to the Economic Times.

Companies have started providing air filtering masks to their employees and installing air purifiers, according to the ET report.

Here are the key govt measures announced on Sunday:

1) All construction and demolition work across the capital will be shut down for the next five days. 

2) No diesel generators to be used for the next five days, except at places which provide emergency services like hospitals and mobile towers. 

3) All government and private schools to be shutdown for three days. The government has also appealed that people stay indoors as much as possible and work from home. 

4) The coal-based Badarpur power plant will be shutdown for 10 days from Monday. 

5) Vacuum cleaning of city roads from November 10. 

6) The public works department (PWD) to carry out water sprinkling on roads of 100-foot width from Monday at least once a week to combat dust pollution. The PWD started its operations from Sunday itself. 

7) Strict enforcement of the ban on burning of leaves and other waste in the city. 

8) Landfill sites to be bulldozed with the directions having already been issued. 

9) The Odd-Even vehicle rationing scheme could be brought back. 

10) The state government will discuss with the Centre the possibility of creating artificial rain over the capital with cloud seeding. 

11) According to The Telegraph India, an app by the environment department will enable the public to alert authorities about garbage burning. Also, the government will start issuing advisories to the government about pollution levels and risks. 

Here is what India Inc is doing on its end:

1) American Tower Corporation to announce flexible working hours next week for its employees. Coca-Cola, according to the ET report, also has a "flexi work" policy which allows employees to work from home under such emergencies as the present situation in the capital.

2) Big names like Google, Huawei, Panasonic and LG Electronics India have installed air purifiers in their local offices. 

3) HCL and Panasonic have issued an advisory to their respective employees to stay indoors unless unavoidable.  

4) Indus Towers, Lava and Intex Technologies have provided their respective employees with protective masks. Indus Towers, the ET report added, has gone a step further and provided such masks to the families of their employees too.