Delhi government has planned to rope in international companies that are experts in mechanical sweeping of roads to clean the city's dusty streets, a major contributor to air pollution in the national capital.
The government's move came after an earlier tender in this regard received poor response as few Indian companies have the required expertise in this area.
At present, Public Works Department (PWD) operates four vacuum cleaning road machines on rent. Now, it wants to buy these machines for a permanent solution to dusty roads.
"Government has planned to float global tenders to attract both domestic and international companies to mechanically sweep city's roads. As per requirement, around 15 vacuum cleaning roads machines will be bought," said a senior government official.
The proposal to mechanically sweep Delhi's roads was announced in December 2015 as part of decisions taken by the government to combat alarming levels of air pollution in the city.
The official said that global tenders are expected to be floated later this month.
The idea behind roping in international players is that in India, few companies have the required expertise in mechanically sweeping the city's roads that is why earlier tenders floated last year received poor response.
In India, there are a few places where roads are mechanically cleaned.
A comprehensive IIT-Kanpur study on Delhi's air quality had identified road dust as the biggest source of suspended particulate matter in the city's air, pegging it at 38 per cent.
Around 1,280 km of the city's total road length comes under the local Public Works Department as it is responsible only for roads which are more than 60-ft wide. The rest comes under the purview of the civic bodies.
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