Delhi smog: EPCA recommends parking fees in Delhi-NCR be hiked four times

NEW DELHI: Environment body EPCA on Tuesday recommended that vehicle parking fees in Delhi-NCR should be quadrupled to curb worsening air quality in the capital as the high-pollution winter months kicked in. EPCA also instructed Delhi Metro to lower fares during off-peak hours for at least 10 days, introduce more coaches and frequent services The decision was taken at a meeting of the Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution Prevention and Control Authority (EPCA) here to discourage people from using private vehicles as air pollution worsened further and touched more alarming proportions on Tuesday. The authority said the national capital was facing a "crisis situation", which is likely to persist for the next few days. The body also instructed Delhi and neighbouring states -- Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana -- to strengthen the public transport system by introducing more buses. Amongst the other measures, it directed a fine of Rs 50,000 on road construction agencies violating dust pollution norms in Delhi-NCR. The body asked the Delhi-NCR governments to start preparing for measures like odd-even and ban construction activities if pollution aggravates. The measures also include complete closure of brick kilns, hot mix plants and stone crushers across the region till further notice. The National Capital Region saw its worst air quality and smog situation of the year -- which was even worse than a day after Diwali, as a yellow blanket of smog hung heavily in the sky. The pollution level rose to dangerous levels, with 18 out of 21 active pollution monitoring stations recording "severe" air quality. (With inputs from agencies)