Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot has requested a Supreme Court-appointed environment body to implement the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in NCR towns along with Delhi to control air pollution.
In a letter sent on Wednesday to the Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA), Gahlot said: "In public interest, it is requested that EPCA would do well to advise NCR towns to implement GRAP including Odd-Even scheme along with Delhi."
The Minister said that according to rules, GRAP had to be implemented not only in Delhi but in NCR towns as well.
"It needs to be appreciated that unless GRAP is implemented across all NCR towns, pollution level in Delhi as well as neighbouring towns cannot be brought down.
"Mere implementation of measures within Delhi only would not be of much effect unless similar measures are adopted in the remaining NCR towns as well," the letter read.
Criticising the environment body, the Minister said "EPCA has not helped the matter by keeping quiet with regard to the obligations of NCR towns in this regard".
The National Capital Region (NCR) includes the whole of Delhi and many districts of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.
--IANS
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