New Delhi: The drop in air quality due to a dust storm has sparked political sparring in Delhi, with the opposition AAP claiming the situation was “never this bad” during its rule and the BJP terming the charge an attempt at scoring political brownie points.An overnight duststorm led to Delhi’s air quality slipping into the poor category with an AQI of 236 at 8 am on Thursday after staying steady at a moderate level for the past few weeks.
Former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote on X that the air pollution situation was “never this bad” during this time of the year under the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP’s) rule.
The ex-CM’s views were echoed by Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly and senior AAP leader Atishi, who claimed on the social media platform that Delhi’s AQI has never been so high in May.
Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data shows that from 2022-2024, AQI on May 15 never exceeded 243, she said. “Today, the AQI is 500.”
In a letter to Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, Atishi, in Hindi, wrote, “Delhi’s AQI has crossed 500 in May; this has never happened before. Official figures of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) are witness to the fact that from the year 2022 to 2024, the AQI on 15 May never went above 243. As of today, this figure is above 500.”
She further said, “Chief Minister, today, the BJP is in power at the centre, LG (Lieutenant Governor) is also from the BJP; the BJP is in the MCD, and now the BJP is in power in Delhi as well. That is a completely BJP four-engine government. Still, pollution is rampant?”
Atishi further asked whether Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa would take responsibility for the city’s worsening air pollution.
“In your government, Environment Minister Sirsa used to make big statements that the burning of garbage in Delhi is causing pollution. Now, when there is a BJP government in the MCD as well, why has the air of Delhi become so poisonous today?”
She added that the people of Delhi were facing a “double whammy of heat and pollution” and questioned the government’s preparedness.
“No plan, no action, only false claims and slogans.”
Sirsa hit back, saying it was “unfortunate” that a former chief minister was using a natural phenomenon to score political brownie points. The “real blame” lies on the AAP, which neglected pressing issues during its 10-year rule in Delhi, the BJP leader said.
“Today’s spike in AQI was due to a weather event, not misgovernance. But let’s talk about real misgovernance Atishi ji For 10 years, AAP allowed Delhi to drown in mountains of untreated legacy waste, broken and dust-choked roads with ZERO accountability on pollution!” the city environment minister said on X.
Senior AAP leader and former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia claimed the AQI had reached 500, and he shared on X a mobile phone screenshot of the air quality figure.
“The four engines of the BJP government are emitting smoke in Delhi. The AQI in Delhi is currently 500 — meaning poison! Sunlight is not visible, one cannot breathe, eyes burn, and throat is sore. No planning, no accountability, no emergency plan. Only speeches and slogans,” he said.
An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 ‘severe’.
