Delhi minister targets BJP for 'very poor' AQI after Diwali; Kapil Mishra hits back

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Monday blamed Bharatiya Janata leaders for people flouting the Supreme Court's blanket ban on the manufacturing, storage, sale and use of firecrackers in the national capital and NCR during Diwali celebrations on Sunday, drawing a sharp reaction from BJP leader Kapil Mishra.

Gopal Rai called a pollution review meeting with the officers of the environment department at the Delhi Secretariat on Monday.

The move comes after the Air Quality Index (AQI) at several places in Delhi-NCR turned 'very poor' on Monday, a day after Diwali celebrations.

“The bursting of firecrackers has increased pollution levels in Delhi. Not many people have burst firecrackers, but it was done in some places in a targeted manner. The way BJP leaders were inciting people, its result can be seen today,” Rai told news agency ANI.

"The only reason why the level of pollution has increased today is because of the burning of firecrackers. Even after the order of the Supreme Court, the BJP does not want to fulfill its responsibility, it is unfortunate... the BJP wanted firecrackers to be burnt and the police are with the BJP in all three states (Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh)...: Rai alleged.

Reacting sharply, Kapil Mishra, Delhi BJP vice-president, described Rai's statement on pollution as “shameful”.

“It is foolish to blame firecrackers for pollution. A week ago, Delhi's AQI was 500. This morning, AQI is 296. How did the pollution levels reduce?” Kapil Mishra said in a video message posted on social media X.

“If there was pollution from firecrackers, then Gaza would have the highest pollution in the world. Fight pollution, don't fight children's firecrackers,” the BJP leader added.

Delhi’s air quality stayed in the ‘very poor’ category on Monday. The PM 2.5 levels shot up to around 30 times the permissible hourly standards for the ultrafine particle, with the spike in its concentration – between midnight and 2am – expected to gradually push Delhi’s average air quality index (AQI) to the ‘severe’ category later in the day.

Speaking about the review meeting, Rai said, "The review meeting will include discussions on the overall air quality situation in Delhi-NCR. We will conduct discussions on the status of the different enforcement works that have been implemented to tackle the pollution."

"A meeting has been called at 12 pm today on Monday, wherein we will discuss all the situations related to the air quality and pollution," added the Environment Minister.

Pictures and videos from various parts of Delhi showed a thick haze covering the roads, significantly reducing visibility and making it difficult to see beyond a few hundred meters.

Despite the AAP government's complete ban on firecrackers and the 'Diya Jalao, Patakhe nahi' campaign, visuals from various parts of Delhi, including Lodhi Road, RK Puram, Karol Bagh, and Punjabi Bagh, showed fireworks lighting up the night sky on Sunday.

Congress MP Manish Tewari took to social media X and posted, "Last night in Lutyens Delhi firecrackers were bursting till 2 AM in the morning with sparklers, bombs, rockets and every other firecracker used on Deepawali on full & ferocious display. Did the Supreme Court ban Firecrackers?"

Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale also wrote to the Delhi police on Monday seeking information on cases filed against the bursting of firecrackers on Diwali night.

Recently, Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government in Delhi imposed a complete ban on firecrackers. In the wake of the pollution situation, the government even considered the idea of 'artificial rain' to tackle the foul air in the city, until sudden rainfall brought a major respite, lowering the pollution level.

Previous data related to pollution shows that since the last week of October, the national capital's air quality has been at its worst.

(With inputs from ANI)