00:00Let's take that question to our reporters.
00:02Joining me next is Shivani Sharma and Piyush Mishra.
00:05Shivani and Piyush, you heard those figures over there.
00:08Shivani actually joins us from the banks of Yamuna,
00:11where there's another crisis brewing.
00:13I'll come to you in just a bit, Shivani.
00:15Piyush is over here as well.
00:16Piyush, this time around, we saw Delhi government take some preemptive measures.
00:20They were not just reacting.
00:21They said that there will be a winter action plan.
00:24They rolled out an EV policy as well.
00:26Both good actions to take.
00:28But as you and I both know, when it comes to the national capital,
00:31it's a complicated problem.
00:33Because while the rules are being rolled out by the Delhi government,
00:37implementation is not under them.
00:38The police does not come under them.
00:40Also, NCR has different police forces as well.
00:43A lot of times, they don't comply either.
00:46At the moment, in terms of application of these guidelines,
00:51whether it could be GRAP or the ones that kick in from the 1st of November,
00:54how exactly is Delhi government planning to ensure that all these good schemes
01:00actually find some teeth on the ground?
01:06Well, Sonal, it's been 10 to 12 years, and I've been covering successive pollution season.
01:13Every time when this month comes and this week of October-November comes,
01:18I see pollution level rising.
01:19And every year, we have seen government's failures.
01:23When Ahmadiyya Party was in government,
01:26they used to blame central government as they were not helping them in combating pollution.
01:31They came up with a few policies like odd-event policy.
01:34Even that did not help.
01:36Pollution level did not decrease.
01:37And still, we are standing at the same situation.
01:40The pollution level, be it in Delhi or in NCR, has not come down.
01:45In few days from now, we will have Diwali.
01:48And after Diwali, the pollution will increase to a new high.
01:53And that will certainly cause a lot of problems to the people living in Delhi and NCR.
01:58Yes, Delhi government is saying that they have come up with GRAP 1 restrictions from November 1,
02:04which will certainly not allow for certain activities, which includes construction activities.
02:10Also, you know, entry of vehicles below B6, they will not be allowed to enter in Delhi.
02:18So, there are some measures which the Delhi government is planning to take.
02:22But the point here is that every year, similar sort of situation happens
02:26and no actions have been taken by the government.
02:29I am right now present in Greater Noida.
02:32And here, the pollution is in poor category.
02:35Let me also try to show you the visuals of haze in the air.
02:39It's 5.10 p.m.
02:42And I can still see haze in the air.
02:45And this is certainly telling us as to how due to lower wind speed
02:49and unfavorable dispersion conditions, the haze, the pollutants have accumulated,
02:54which is certainly causing inconvenience to the people.
02:56Also, on my left hand side, construction activity is going on.
03:01But yes, the people have taken few measures of this entire area.
03:06You can see as to how the construction activity is underway here.
03:09This entire area has been covered with a tint shed.
03:14Few measures have been taken by the people here.
03:17And remember that only this is allowed that, okay, if you want to do construction activities,
03:23you can do it, but with a few measures.
03:26But despite all these measures, it seems like the pollution level is not coming down.
03:32A week before, Greater Noida and Noida were among the severely affected cities due to pollution.
03:38And today also, it is under the poor category.
03:42Delhi government is certainly taking a few actions,
03:44but it is somewhere not helping people and the pollution level has not come down.
03:50All right.
03:51So, you know, season after season, year after year,
03:54we seem to be seeing the same problem on the ground.
03:56But before I go to Shivani, let me give our viewers a sense of what's happening,
04:00the other pollution that we are really tackling with.
04:02Delhi NCR's pollution crisis is not limited to air alone.
04:06At Delhi is Kalandikunj, a thick blanket of white froth.
04:08Once again, has surfaced on the Yamuna.
04:11This form forms when sewage and other pollutants enter the river.
04:16These include substances found in soaps, detergents.
04:19The froth is visible as a sign of pollution in the river, and we continue to see it.
04:23The Delhi government, however, maintains the situation has improved compared to previous years.
04:27It has claimed that the froth is no longer visible across Delhi and the stretch of Yamuna,
04:32except in certain cases near the Uttar Pradesh border.
04:36So, what exactly is that that we're seeing on our screen?
04:39Let me take that question to my colleague Shivani Sharma, joining us for more details on the story.
04:44Shivani, just this week, we've had the Delhi Chief Minister announce that there will be a waterways that will be
04:51developed.
04:52The entire bank of Yamuna will get a facelift.
04:55But we can't even solve the basic problem of pollution, where every time chhat happens,
05:01we see the Delhi government make a little cocoon which is clean for people to come and take a dip.
05:06The rest of the river continues to be as bad, right?
05:10Is there any long-term solution in sight?
05:18Sonal, it's really unfortunate to keep on reporting on this kind of a toxic situation of the river.
05:23I'll take you through the pictures while I speak.
05:26See, this is the state of Yamuna River at Kalindi Kunj,
05:29where the thick foam, the toxic foam is on the surface,
05:32and this is showing the condition of the water, and this happens every year.
05:36And there have been projects that have been announced,
05:39more than 9,000 crore rupees projects, approximately.
05:43They have been announced recently, not only by the BJP's state government,
05:49but also the central government.
05:50There have been announcements of the cruise that will be starting soon in Yamuna.
05:54Yet we know that the 40% untreated water is being thrown into Yamuna River.
06:01This is industrial waste, this is sewage, this is untreated water.
06:04And this is all not only causing pollution inside this water, wherever this water is going,
06:10but it also circulates in the air, Sonal.
06:12So this is also giving its share to the air pollution.
06:15That also happens to be another important issue on which the BJP,
06:21when it was contesting the election in Delhi, it was fighting.
06:26And they have been putting allegations that our Madhmi Party was not working,
06:30but there's no impact on ground when we come to air pollution issue or the Yamuna's pollution.
06:36You see, this is the toxic froth, this is the toxic foam on the surface of Yamuna River.
06:41And there are 22 drains, big, small, if we count all,
06:45there are around 22 drains that come and they bring that polluted water into Yamuna River.
06:51The sewage treatment plants are not functional.
06:54A few of them are not working at all.
06:56There have been new promises that there will be new installations,
06:59but we do not see that impact on ground.
07:02So what's the long-term solution?
07:03That remains a very big question.
07:05But yes, it's really unfortunate to keep on visiting these pictures year after year.
07:11And this is the time, very important one,
07:12because after some time there will be chhat that will be celebrated here.
07:16And as you mentioned, that only a limited portion of Yamuna River and its ghats will be cleaned and prepared.
07:23But what about the water that flows to those ghats where those people will be doing that chhat puja?
07:30They will be standing in this water.
07:32They will be doing achaman that happens during chhat.
07:35So is this water portable?
07:38That's a big question.
07:39We cannot even stand here for a longer duration because the fumes are so toxic.
07:43This is a big question.
07:44When the picture is going to change, but certainly there are promises, there are claims,
07:49but a contradiction in the actual picture at Yamuna River.
07:55Indians have reached space and moon and Mars,
07:59but we don't seem to know how to clean our own planet.
08:02We don't seem to know how to clean our own air,
08:04and we clearly don't care much about what's happening to our rivers either.
08:08Massive, massive, appalling state of affairs,
08:11really there in the national capital of the country.
08:14Shwani and Piyush, thanks so much for bringing us that ground reality.
08:17Shwani and Piyush, thanks so much for bringing us that ground reality.
