"This is an emergency measure. If emergency is there odd- even will work but if it becomes an everyday affair, people might take it lightly," he said speaking on the issue of air pollution in Delhi at PHD Chamber here.
A proper environment must be created and adequate public transport must in place so that there is no excuse for not following the odd-even scheme, he said.
Stressing that a cess should be imposed on diesel cars, Bhure Lal said EPPCA was not in favour of a ban on them.
"We are not in favour of banning (diesel cars), we have never said that. But a cess should be imposed on diesel cars because they are polluting (the air). A running vehicle emits 40 gases in environment while diesel cars pollute more and cause cancer," he said.
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He noted the slow progress in the fight against air pollution in the national capital and pointed to multiplicity of agencies involved in it.
No hydrocarbon fuel is a clean fuel and till the time a source of pollution-free energy is discovered, the task will remain unfinished, he said.
"To my mind, it is solar energy which delivers the goods and we have to work in that direction," he said, urging the industry to find alternative ways and work on converting solar energy into "commercial" energy.
"In 1970s, the number of automobiles in Delhi was 8 lakh. By the close of 20th century, it was 28 lakh and today it is more than 8 million. We are trying to convert Delhi into a gas chamber and will get choked."
"We need a change in lifestyle. We consider it to be a matter of prestige to travel in our own single cars, we do not like car-pooling and find it below our dignity. We use items like geysers, fridge, toasters, air conditioners which cause pollution," he said.
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Anumita Roy Chowdhury of Centre for Science and
Environment gave a presentation on the current scenario of air pollution in Delhi and ways to bring it under control.
She said the odd-even scheme implemented in the second half of last month helped control air pollution in the first ten days but after April 23, farm fires in neighbouring Punjab and Haryana worsened the situation.
Linking pollution with mobility crisis, she said limiting parking areas and raising charges for parking can check rise in numbers and pollution caused by cars.
Terming pollution, especially air pollution, as among the "top killers" in the world, she said there were smaller cities in the country which were more polluted than Delhi.
Citing data, she showed the trend of 'multi-pollutant crisis' in which all pollutants were registering a rise making it difficult to keep environs clean even as she emphasised that momentum of action must not slow down.
Outlining the measures taken, including odd-even scheme, banning of diesel taxis, shutting down of power plants to check air pollution in Delhi, she said the Centre's decision to go straight to Euro VI emission norms for vehicles could prove to be a "game changer".
Delhi government's Special Secretary (Environment) Kulanand Joshi detailed the actions taken by the government and its agency DPCC, while stressing on the role of stakeholders to mitigate air pollution.
He said the Rajghat power plant "stands closed" at present for not meeting particulate emission norms while three units of total five at Badarpur power plant have also been shut down.
A total of 87 persons have been penalised so far for burning garbage and a fine of over Rs one crore has been realised. Also, 437 challans were issued for non-compliance of dust control measures at construction sites, he said.