Poisonous Particles + Noise Nuisance = Death for Delhi
Uncontrolled Lethal Dust and Noise Pollution in India’s Capital New Delhi
A new research report released by RMN Foundation – a humanitarian organization – reveals the worsening environmental situation in India’s capital New Delhi because of increasing air pollution.
Of late, the hazardous effects of pollution have exacerbated as the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, has unleashed a cruel scheme under the FAR (floor area ratio) construction policy.
The new scheme is being implemented through the office of the Lt. Governor of Delhi, which is the highest administrative authority in the city-state.
The scheme vaguely allows inhabited group housing complexes of Delhi to extend their existing buildings by allowing individual flat owners to construct more rooms, balconies, etc. while ignoring the health and safety concerns of others who prefer to live in a clean, peaceful environment.
The ill-conceived FAR policy has led to a widespread building construction activity in all parts of Delhi – particularly in the group housing complexes where nearly one-fifth of Delhi’s 30 million people live. Obviously, this massive construction work is spreading lethal cement-dust and noise pollution in and around the sites where construction is happening.
[ Court Stops FAR Construction in Dwarka Housing Society. DDA Questioned. ]
Recently, the Delhi High Court has taken the right decision to stop FAR construction in a housing society of Dwarka in order to save people from dust and noise pollution.
However, the corrupt managing committee (MC) members in other societies have ignored the court directive and are still pursuing FAR construction as such projects give huge opportunity to MC members to swindle public money. Unfortunately, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) – which is allowing FAR construction – is also part of the racket.
[ CVC Orders Inquiry into DDA Corruption in FAR Construction ]
The focus of the report is on the occupied cooperative group housing societies of Delhi where hundreds of thousands of people are getting affected because of FAR construction and pollution.
The construction projects include the extension of existing buildings as well as redevelopment projects which will eventually affect the health of an estimated 10 million people in and around the city as the dust pollution will further contaminate the air leading to more dangerous air pollution.
Click the image to download the report.
As Delhi is already the world’s most polluted city, the air in Delhi has an annual average of 122 µg/m3 of PM2.5 particles. That’s 12.2 times the WHO safe level. This is an extremely dangerous pollution level and the FAR construction will add more pollution to the city’s air.
[ Report Corruption in Delhi Housing Societies to Clean House ]
While this construction is not required at all, the government officials have failed to understand the damaging effects of pollution on the environment as they have refused to withdraw the FAR policy despite numerous protests and representations by those citizens who want to live in a clean and pollution-free environment.
The report aims to sensitize all stakeholders particularly the Indian bureaucrats and politicians who lack awareness of the environment nuances and have blindly given permission for FAR construction in Delhi.
It sheds light on various aspects of FAR construction and harmful pollution, and also highlights the environment, corruption, and lawlessness issues around FAR construction and its adverse impact on the local economy.
The author of the report – Rakesh Raman – has been running mass awareness environment-protection campaigns since March 2017 in order to get the FAR construction stopped in Delhi.
He has interacted with various government officials and hundreds of people in Delhi to inform them about the risks of extended FAR construction and pollution.
Of late, he has formed the Green Group of Dwarka in order to intensify the environment-protection activities in Delhi. You can join the Green Group online by filling in a simple form.
