MCD launches comprehensive plan to tackle dust, vehicular pollution

New Delhi: As pollution levels continue to choke the capital, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has ramped up its anti-pollution measures, deploying anti-smog guns, mechanical sweepers, and tightening penalties for violators.

The Corporation is also set to propose a plan in the upcoming House meeting to double parking fees across the city, in a move aimed at discouraging the use of private vehicles and curbing pollution, officials said on Monday.

The decision will depend on the final approval of the House, they added.

A senior MCD official told PTI that the Corporation is taking multiple steps to tackle rising pollution levels in the national capital.

“We are committed to ensuring that Delhiites breathe cleaner air. Teams are working on the ground with all measures in place — from anti-smog guns and mechanical sweeping machines to stricter enforcement against waste burning and construction violations. More machines will be added soon to strengthen the drive,” the official said.

The civic body has intensified ground-level enforcement, with teams regularly monitoring industrial areas and construction and demolition (C&D) sites to prevent open burning of waste.

As per the National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines, violators face penalties ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000.

According to official data, the MCD maintains over 6,130 km of roads, cleaned daily by nearly 57,000 sanitation workers. To tackle dust pollution, 52 mechanical road sweepers have been deployed to clean around 3,400 km of main roads on alternate days, with plans to add 18 more soon.

In addition, 167 water sprinklers, 28 mobile anti-smog guns, and 20 fixed anti-smog guns have been installed at landfill sites, while 15 more have been deployed at high-rise buildings.

Between April and September 2025, the Corporation resurfaced and strengthened 224 km of roads and repaired over 7,600 potholes.

To control emissions from C&D activities, MCD has registered 760 sites on the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) portal and issued 1,222 environmental compensation notices amounting to Rs 1.21 crore for violations between January and October 2025.

Additionally, the Building Department has also identified 149 high-rise buildings, including malls, offices, hotels, and schools, for installing anti-smog guns.

The MCD has set up 106 designated dumping sites for safe disposal of C&D waste, with 59 sites already equipped with barricades, sprinklers, and signboards. Work is in progress at 19 more sites.