The Delhi government has deployed 114 tankers to spray water across the city in a bid to reduce the mounting levels of air pollution and settle the dust, a major contributor to the worsening air quality index (AQI) in the national capital.

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai flagged off the tankers on Saturday and said that the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, led by Arvind Kejriwal, has taken the step to control the increased levels of air pollution in the national capital following the festival of Diwali.

Also Read | Pollution impact: After Diwali, Delhi doctors report spike in breathing trouble

The minister, who dispatched the water tankers outside the Delhi Secretariat, said that despite the ban on crackers this time, people engaged in bursting fireworks leading to an increased level of pollution in the city post-Diwali. However, crackers are not the only cause behind the worsening air quality in the city, Rai noted, adding that incidents of stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana actually increased this year on Diwali. As a matter of fact, as many as 3,500 incidents of stubble burning were reported in the neighbouring states on Friday, while around 4,000 were reported on Saturday, he added.

“Last month, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had launched an action plan that is being implemented across the city,” HT’s sister publication Livemint quoted Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai as saying. “Along with the people of Delhi, we are running the campaign to check the local source of air pollution in the city – be it dust, vehicle or biomass.”

The Delhi government has installed smog guns at various parts of the city and water is being sprinkled to bring down the heavy dust particles suspended in the air, the minister said, adding that as many as 92 construction sites across the national capital have been sealed for violation of pollution-related protocols. The government, he said, is on track to fight air pollution in tandem with the citizens, as per the winter action plan launched a month ago.

Also Read | Who all are most vulnerable to Delhi’s pollution? Doctors answer

The environment minister also hit out at the opposing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for allegedly defying the cracker ban, claiming that the party came out publicly in support of celebrating Diwali with fireworks and instigated citizens to burst crackers on purpose. However, Rai expressed hope that the air pollution situation in the national capital will improve somewhat in the next day or two.

Meanwhile, with Delhi’s air quality plummeting to hazardous levels after Diwali, doctors in the city have reported a 20 per cent increase in the number of patients complaining of respiratory trouble such as shortness of breath, wheezing, and incessant coughing. To complicate matters, the prevalent air pollution levels may adversely impact people who have recovered from Covid-19, as a significant section of these patients may not yet have completely healthy lungs.