"Go Electric, Go Now" Message From G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant To Tackle Delhi Pollution
Speaking at a high-level event (Urban Adda) on World Environment Day, he noted that air pollution is cutting life expectancy by 6.3 years and costing the economy Rs 100,000 crore annually - nearly 3% of India's GDP.
Mr Kant laid out a clear and urgent roadmap for Delhi and other urban centres to tackle pollution head-on:
* Electrify all 2-and 3-wheelers within a year
* Mandate electric for all new taxis and convert current fleets within 24 months
* Ensure all school buses are electric or retrofitted in 2 years
* Shift all brick kilns to cleaner zigzag technology
* Install FGD and DSI units in all thermal power plants
* Adopt electric boilers in SMEs, powered by rooftop solar
"We must leapfrog to clean energy. Don't waste time or money on legacy technologies. Go electric, go now," he urged.
Backing this call, Rajesh Verma, Chairperson of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), revealed how Delhi's infrastructure hasn't kept up with the vehicle explosion.
From 1981 to 2021, the number of vehicles in Delhi-NCR rose 21-fold, while road infrastructure only doubled, dangerous imbalance choking the city.
Mr Verma stressed that technology must be backed by enforcement and behavioural change, but also pointed to positive developments:
* 25% of Delhi's bus fleet is now electric, with 7,600+ e-buses deployed
* 'Good' AQI days are up by 30% in the last 7 years
* 'Severe' pollution days have fallen by nearly 25%
As a major step toward cleaner air, CAQM and Raahgiri Foundation have signed an MoU to create a Resources Lab for dust pollution control.
This hub will train urban officials from NCR cities in sustainable road design, dust mitigation, and non-motorized transport providing them the tools and techniques for long-term environmental resilience.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
38 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Chemkart India IPO: Check GMP, price band and other details
Mumbai's Chemkart India, a B2B food and health ingredient distributor, is launching its IPO today. The company aims to raise Rs 80.08 crore. The IPO includes a fresh issue and an offer for sale. The issue closes on July 9, with BSE SME listing expected on July 14. Proceeds will fund expansion and debt repayment. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Chemkart India, a Mumbai-based B2B distributor of food and health ingredients, will open its IPO today, aiming to raise Rs 80.08 crore through a mix of fresh issue and offer for sale. The three-day issue will close on July 9, with shares expected to list on the BSE SME platform on July IPO comprises a fresh issue of 26 lakh shares aggregating up to Rs 64.48 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of 6.29 lakh shares worth Rs 15.60 price band is fixed at Rs 236–248 per share, with a lot size of 600 shares. Ahead of the issue opening, the GMP is Rs 0 in the unlisted Horizon Capital Advisors is the lead manager to the issue, with Bigshare Services as registrar. Alacrity Securities is the market in 2015, Chemkart operates in the health and food ingredients segment, supplying amino acids, herbal extracts, vitamins, proteins, and sports nutrition components to supplement company also offers in-house services like grinding, blending, and packaging at its 28,000 sq. ft. facility in Bhiwandi, enhancing its control over quality and IPO proceeds will fund capital expenditure through investment in its wholly owned subsidiary, Easy Raw Materials, repay existing borrowings, and meet general corporate of FY25, Chemkart reported a 55% jump in revenue to Rs 205.46 crore and a 67% rise in profit after tax at Rs 24.26 crore. Its return on equity stands at 59%, with a healthy EBITDA margin of 16.12%.: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of the Economic Times)
India Gazette
41 minutes ago
- India Gazette
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan chairs review meeting on education in Odisha's 4 aspirational districts
Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], July 7 (ANI): Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan chaired a high-level review meeting on education (school and higher) and other priority sectors in the four aspirational districts of Koraput, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, and Malkangiri at Koraput. Odisha's Minister of School and Mass Education, Nityananda Gond, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, senior officials from the district administrations, and Superintendents of Police from the respective districts participated in the meeting on Sunday. The review focused on improving educational infrastructure, ensuring quality education, and accelerating development in these aspirational districts. Further sharing the details of the meeting, Pradhan, in a post on X, said, 'Conducted a comprehensive review of the educational ecosystem in the undivided Koraput region covering the four aspirational districts of Koraput, Rayagada, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur in the presence of Odisha Education Ministers Shri @NityanandaBJP and Shri @suryabanshibjp.' 'We had detailed discussions on improving the school and higher education landscape and addressing issues related to GER, drop-outs, expansion and development of school infrastructure, residential facilities, availability and capacity building of teachers among others. Also, took stock of implementation and progress of welfare schemes in priority sectors like nutrition, health, women and child development and skill development. We also discussed to lay more emphasis on covering a child's educational journey from 0-18 years while addressing nutritional and health aspects,' he added further. Later, speaking to the media, Pradhan said, 'The Central government has identified Koraput, Rayagada, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur as the four aspirational districts. Over the past eight years, new initiatives have been taken in these districts. Education and Skills are being given special central and state governments are taking various steps for the development of Koraput...' A day ago, Pradhan inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for projects worth Rs 480 crore aimed at boosting the infrastructural development of the Central University of Odisha (CUO) in Koraput district. At the event, six Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were exchanged between leading educational institutions. The collaborations involved IIT Bhubaneswar, NIT Rourkela, NISER Bhubaneswar, IIM Sambalpur, Central Sanskrit University, and Central University of Odisha. (ANI)
India Gazette
41 minutes ago
- India Gazette
Uttar Pradesh no longer
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 7 (ANI): BJP MP Dinesh Sharma has praised the 'transformation' of Uttar Pradesh under the BJP-led government, claiming that the state has shed its image of lawlessness and has now become the 'best state'. 'Everyone knows what kind of rule is prevailing in Uttar Pradesh. The era of lawlessness has ended, and now the rule of the people is in place... It took a considerable amount of time to transform Uttar Pradesh. Today, after 8 years, Uttar Pradesh has become not just excellent but the best state...' Meanwhile, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that the state currently has 10 per cent forest cover and the goal is to raise it to 16 per cent. 'The campaign 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' that we started in alignment with the Prime Minister's vision on World Environment Day - June 5, 2025, is achieving new heights of success. On June 29, this campaign moved ahead, and on July 9, it will achieve a new height when 37 crore saplings will be planted across Uttar Pradesh... I am happy that the 210 crore tree plantation programs were successfully completed in 8 years. We now have 10 per cent forest cover. We should aim for 16% of forest cover in Uttar Pradesh, which will equal the country's 16% population living in the state,' CM Yogi Adityanath said. He further said that PM Modi has decided that India will achieve the target of Net Zero in Carbon Emissions, and the government has made several transformations in this regard. 'In 2017, when we had to conduct a plantation drive, we could hardly obtain five crore saplings from the nurseries of the forest department. In 2025, we have 52 crore saplings - and are not of Eucalyptus or Popular but neem, mango, peepal,' he said. 'I am happy that PM Modi's campaign to protect the environment by planting saplings - under 'Ek ped maa ke naam' campaign has been successful and to give it a newer heights, on July 9, a record number of saplings - over 37 crore will be planted in a single day,' he added. (ANI)
