Delhi govt rolls out 'Road RADAR' initiative to track, address pollution hotspots in real time

Through Road RADAR, the government is introducing a scientific system of daily surveillance, real-time reporting and direct departmental accountability so that pollution sources are not ignored, repeated or allowed to linger. Officials said using the MCD-311 mobile application, each surveyor will conduct geo-tagged field surveys and raise at least 70 geo-located, photographic pollution-related issues every day.

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) on Friday launched a new pollution control programme for the capital's road network to strengthen on-ground monitoring and enable rapid redressal of dispersed sources of air pollution across the city, officials said. As part of the initiative, operationally named 'Road RADAR' (Real-time Air Pollution Detection Across Roads), dedicated ground-level field surveyors have been deployed in each district and will function under supervision every working day to systematically survey roads across Delhi and identify pollution hotspots in real time, officials added. According to officials, ''Under the new mechanism, 13 surveyors will collectively cover approximately 18,000 km of Delhi's roads spanning all wards under the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, New Delhi Municipal Council, Public Works Department and Delhi Cantonment Board jurisdiction.'' The entire Delhi road network will be comprehensively covered every month, with each surveyor assigned a minimum of 20 km of roadways daily to ensure continuous tracking of pollution sources across the city, they added. Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, ''Delhi's fight for clean air must be won on the ground, lane by lane and road by road. Through 'Road RADAR', the government is introducing a scientific system of daily surveillance, real-time reporting and direct departmental accountability so that pollution sources are not ignored, repeated or allowed to linger.'' Officials said using the MCD-311 mobile application, each surveyor will conduct geo-tagged field surveys and raise at least 70 geo-located, photographic pollution-related issues every day. ''This creates a collective daily target of around 1,000 identified issues, generating a steady and actionable stream of field intelligence for enforcement and remediation agencies. The system also includes built-in safeguards to ensure zero duplication of reported issues, so that every complaint corresponds to a unique and actionable pollution source,'' they added. The programme will track 11 categories of air pollution sources, namely road dust from unpaved roads, broken footpaths, dividers and potholes; sand or loose material piled on roadsides; unregulated parking lots; garbage, including overflowing 'dhalaos' (dumps) and roadside waste; biomass, garbage and plastic burning on roadsides; construction and demolition waste; barren roadsides and central verges requiring greening; dust from construction sites, and other dispersed sources of air pollution identified during field surveys. Sirsa said, ''Air pollution demands persistent monitoring, early detection, and accountable governance. This initiative enables faster departmental action by mapping road dust, waste dumping, open burning, construction dust, and other sources in real time.'' A key feature of the system is its automated complaint-routing process, under which as soon as an issue is reported by a surveyor on the MCD-311 App, it will be automatically routed to the concerned authority for action, officials explained. The complaints will be routed to agencies including the MCD, PWD, Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC), Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Indian Railways and other urban local bodies depending on jurisdiction. Sirsa said the system would help reduce delays in communication, improve response time and strengthen accountability among departments handling pollution control. ''The message is simple: every pollution source identified must lead to action. Every department must respond, and every agency must remain accountable,'' he said.