The Sub-Committee on Safeguarding & Enforcement of the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas, in its 25th meeting held on 12.06.2026 under the chairmanship of Shri Rajesh Verma, reviewed the status of enforcement actions and preparedness measures undertaken by the NCR State Governments, the Government of NCT of Delhi (GNCTD) and the Government of Punjab across key sectors contributing to air pollution in the region. 

The review covered the following key sectors and issues related to implementation of the Commission's Statutory Directions and other pollution-control measures: 

Vehicular Sector:

• Status of implementation of Direction No. 101 regarding installation and operationalization of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras at all Fuel/CNG stations by GNCTD and the State Governments of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan for enforcement of restrictions on fuelling of vehicles without valid PUCC in NCR with effect from 01.10.2026.

• Status of enforcement for implementation of Direction No. 94 regarding fast-tracking of cleaner mobility in services provided by Motor Vehicle Aggregators, Delivery Service Providers and E-Commerce Entities with effect from 01.01.2026, including development of web portals and enforcement through surprise checks/inspections and compliance monitoring.

• Review of status of enforcement against End-Of-Life (EoL) vehicles (BS-III and below) in compliance with the Hon’ble Supreme Court order dated 17.12.2025.

• Identification of traffic congestion hotspots/intersections across Delhi and NCR towns and measures undertaken for decongestion, traffic management and reduction of vehicular emissions. The Commission reviewed progress made in addressing identified congestion points and deployment of additional traffic management personnel and infrastructure.

• The Commission also reviewed the status of phasing out diesel auto-rickshaws from the NCR districts completely by 31.12.2026 (Direction No. 70).

Road Dust and Construction and Demolition (C&D) Waste:

• Status of collection, transportation, processing and scientific management of Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste, including augmentation of processing capacities and offtake of recycled products by ULBs and other agencies, was reviewed in detail.

• Progress made in operation of existing C&D waste processing facilities and establishment of additional processing capacity for effective management of approximately 5,500–6,000 MT of C&D waste generated daily in Delhi.

• Review of measures undertaken for mitigation of dust at C&D sites through effective management of demolition waste.

• Mitigation of road dust, procurement of additional mechanical road sweeping machines (MRSMs) and deployment by 30.09.2026 before the start of winter season of GRAP for removing dust from all roads, particularly in identified dust hotspots across Delhi-NCR.

Stubble Burning:

• Status of action taken for preparedness for implementation of Direction No. 99 and Action Plans prepared by the States of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for prevention and control of paddy stubble burning during 2026 with the objective of complete elimination of such incidents.

• Progress made in promotion of crop diversification, Direct Seeded Rice (DSR), biomass utilization, industrial utilization of crop residue and implementation of extensive IEC and awareness programmes among farmers.

• Status of action taken for implementation of Direction No. 92 mandating use of paddy straw-based biomass pellets in brick kilns (aiming for 30% by 01.11.2026) located in the State of Punjab and non-NCR districts of Haryana for prevention and control of paddy stubble burning was also reviewed in detail. State Governments of Punjab and Haryana, through Direction No. 92, have been directed by the Commission to mandate use of paddy straw-based biomass pellets/briquettes in all brick kilns located in districts beyond NCR as one of the measures towards elimination of open paddy stubble burning, aiming for 50% co-firing of paddy straw-based pellets/briquettes with a target of at least 20% w.e.f. 01.11.2025, 30% w.e.f. 01.11.2026, 40% w.e.f. 01.11.2027 and 50% w.e.f. 01.11.2028.

• During the review meeting, it was observed that many brick kilns in the region are still using unapproved fuels for their operations. Concerned enforcement agencies were accordingly directed by the Commission to conduct intensified inspections and ensure that the Commission’s Statutory Directions are followed earnestly.

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)/Bio-mass Management:

• Status of liquidation of legacy waste (MSW) and capacity augmentation of infrastructure to handle daily fresh waste generation, prevention and control of open burning of MSW and bio-mass, and augmentation of waste processing infrastructure across Delhi-NCR.

• Measures undertaken by concerned agencies for scientific disposal of waste, prevention of landfill fires and strengthening of monitoring and enforcement mechanisms.

Others:

• Status of implementation and progress made under Annual Action Plans by NCR State Governments, GNCTD and concerned agencies for abatement of air pollution in the region.

• Status of installation of additional Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) in NCR districts as per new norms.

• Status of implementation of Direction No. 98 regarding stringent emission standards in industries across Delhi-NCR. It was informed that industrial units not following the prescribed PM emission limit of 50 mg/Nm³ (w.e.f. 01.08.2026 for large and medium industries and w.e.f. 01.10.2026 for remaining industries) shall face strict action, including closure.

• Review of enforcement mechanisms, incognito/surprise inspections of C&D sites, industries and DG sets, and compliance monitoring undertaken by implementing agencies for effective implementation of Statutory Directions issued by the Commission.

• Progress made in timely resolution of complaints received on social media platforms and tagged to concerned agencies in GNCTD/NCR States by CPCB as per the Standard Operating Procedure (SoP).

• Status of provision of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) of existing State Government/Department portals for integration with the Integrated Command & Control Centre (I3C) being developed by the Commission.

• Status of formulation of IEC Plan and activities undertaken in accordance with the "Framework for targeted Information, Education and Communication (IEC) activities by NCR States and GNCTD for abatement of air pollution" dated 03.03.2026 issued by the Commission.

All implementing agencies reaffirmed their commitment to undertake strict, targeted and time-bound actions for effective implementation of the Commission’s Directions and to regularly review sector-specific actions towards abatement of air pollution in the region.

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GS

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