NEW DELHI: Delhi minister Parvesh Verma on Thursday acknowledged that toxic air has become a serious menace for the national capital, while squarely blaming former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for what he described as years of inaction on pollution control.“We accept that toxic air is a big menace,” Verma said, alleging that the previous AAP government failed to take concrete steps to address the crisis and was now indulging in “drama” over pollution. He said the people of Delhi were bearing the brunt of what he called AAP’s “wrongdoing” and administrative apathy.His remarks came as stricter pollution-control measures kicked in across the city under GRAP-IV. From Thursday, the entry of non-Delhi private vehicles that do not meet BS-VI emission standards has been banned, along with the enforcement of the ‘No PUC, No Fuel’ rule at petrol pumps.Fuel stations have stopped dispensing fuel to vehicles without valid Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates. The rule is being enforced using automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, voice alerts at fuel stations, and police support.Officials said around 580 police personnel have been deployed at 126 checkpoints, including Delhi’s border points, to ensure compliance. Transport department enforcement teams have also been stationed at petrol pumps and entry points to strengthen implementation.The entry ban, however, does not apply to CNG- and electric-powered vehicles, public transport, or vehicles carrying essential commodities or providing essential services. Vehicles transporting construction material have also been barred from entering the city as part of GRAP-IV restrictions.Verma said the current government is taking firm steps to tackle pollution, unlike the previous regime, which he accused of ignoring the problem until it reached crisis levels.Veer Jain, a DTC (Delhi Transport Corporation) employee, says, “As per the orders received from the Delhi Govt, vehicles without PUC will not be given fuel. We have to check the documents for all vehicles and tell the petrol pump staff not to give fuel to the defaulters. The order will remain in effect till the next order.”
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