Raising serious concerns about the state of air pollution in India’s capital city, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Tuesday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention for artificial rain in an effort to help smog levels drop.
Speaking to the media, the Minister highlighted that layers of smog continue to cover North India and that artificial rain is the only solution to get rid of the polluting particles. “This is a medical emergency,” he emphasised.
His remarks came as Delhi remained the most polluted city in India. The air quality index reached an alarming 494 under the ‘severe plus’ category. Delhi has been making headlines for the smog problem for quite a number of days this year.
Delhi taking serious measures to tackle air pollution
Cloud seeding or artificial rain features a process of dispersing certain substances such as silver iodide, potassium iodide and dry ice into the atmosphere to stimulate the formation of rain. It typically takes about 30 minutes to generate rain.
During the press conference, Delhi Minister Gopal Rai slammed Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav, stressing that the latter has not called a single meeting on artificial rain despite his four letters sent in the second half of 2024.
On measures taken by the national capital, Rai highlighted that all trucks and diesel buses coming from outside have been banned. He also mentioned school closures and the possibility of implementing the odd-even scheme for vehicles.
