Livemint | Delhi Metro asked to increase frequency as smog nears zero visibility

Nov 08,2017

The Centre has asked the Delhi Metro to increase the frequency of trains to encourage people to use the public transport in the wake heightened pollution levels, an official said on Wednesday.

Housing and urban affairs minister Hardeep Singh Puri asked DMRC managing director Mangu Singh to deploy additional ticketing operators and customer facilitation agents to make metro travel easier for commuters, the ministry spokesperson said.

The move comes in the backdrop of toxic haze hovering over Delhi, leading to near zero visibility at many places and air quality touching a calamitous level.

Measures like deployment of additional personnel for speedy frisking and setting up a team to monitor major stations for smooth traffic movement were also suggested, the spokesperson said.

Delhiites breathed poison with pollutants touching calamitous levels today, as a thick grey smog hung low across the region, prompting the government to declare closure of schools till Sunday.

Authorities in the city scrambled to tackle the “emergency" situation as hospitals recorded a surge in the number of patients complaining of respiratory problems, reminiscent of the ‘1952 Great Smog of London’.

The smog, which triggered near zero visibility at many places and pile-ups on highways, is a mixture of carbon monoxide, particulate matter such as PM2.5, PM10, ground level ozone and oxides of nitrogen and sulphur dioxide, the Delhi government said in a health advisory.