Rs 5 lakh dust fines on citizens as Delhi govt hides failure to curb pollution

New Delhi: The Delhi government on Friday announced environmental compensation of up to Rs 5 lakh for dust rule violations at road cutting and construction sites under its Winter Action Plan, a move that has intensified criticism that the Rekha Gupta government is leaning on punitive measures to cover the absence of a credible strategy to curb toxic air.

Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa directed strict enforcement of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee’s dust mitigation guidelines.

He said dust from road cutting and construction remained a major PM2.5 source and that compliance was “non negotiable”.

The DPCC has deployed nearly 2,000 enforcement personnel across the city for real time monitoring, officials said.

Sirsa said penalties would be imposed for violations and urged executing agencies and contractors to ensure adherence.

The guidelines require two metre dust barriers on wide stretches, covering loose soil and debris, green nets or tarpaulin for stored material, covered transport vehicles, designated waste storage, and regular water sprinkling on unpaved areas.

They also mandate dust masks for workers, signage on restoration timelines and diversions, and PUC certified vehicles for material transport.

The government also cited broader steps such as running 305 community kitchens to curb biomass burning at sites, mechanically sweeping about 3,000 km of roads daily, and stopping polluting interstate trucks at borders.

Officials said more than 50 construction and demolition sites have been shut so far for dust related violations.

In the last 24 hours, authorities inspected 331 small construction sites, carried out 510 checks for illegal dumping, and took action in 331 cases. All 50 complaints of waste or biomass burning led to challans, and 3,108 vehicles were fined for lacking valid PUC certificates.

However, the stepped up fines come amid growing public and political anger over what critics describe as a visionless pollution response under Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.

A recent NewsDrum assessment said Gupta has repeated the earlier AAP playbook of artificial rain, smog towers, and road sprinklers, without showing urgency or a roadmap on source level control. It argued that while citizens do not expect Delhi’s air to be fixed in the first year, they do expect clear direction and visible action, which has been missing.

The critique said Gupta has not mounted a serious attack on major emission sources such as traffic congestion and stubble burning across the NCR.

It noted the absence of measures like smart signal corridors, anti idling drives, or sustained public outreach on traffic and pollution compliance, even as daily bottlenecks worsen emissions.

It also pointed to the lack of political pressure on neighbouring BJP ruled states to curb crop residue burning, leaving Delhi dependent on GRAP restrictions that disrupt life and business each winter.

Against that backdrop, opposition leaders and residents said Friday’s Rs 5 lakh dust penalty risks being seen as a blame shift to contractors and citizens, while structural issues driving Delhi’s annual smog crisis remain unaddressed.