"Instructed authorities to work on air pollution": Maharashtra CM post review meeting on air quality

Speaking about the review meeting, Shinde said, "Seeing the air pollution in Pune, Mumbai and other cities in the state, we reviewed a meeting and instructed the authorities to work on air pollution."

He further said, "We have also instructed BMC to clean the roads and dust on roads in Mumbai with the help of 1000 tankers and the anti-fog machines. The municipal corporations have also been instructed to work on a war level in order to reduce air pollution."

The Maharashtra CM also claimed that he has given a free hand on the usage of all the machines required to bring down air pollution.

"If needed, cloud-seeding instructions will also be done. The High Court has also given some instructions regarding air pollution and we are following the norms of the Environment Department too," said Shinde.

There has been a significant decline in the air quality in some of Maharashtra's major cities, like Mumbai.

Earlier in the day, Mumbai's JJ Hospital opened a separate OPD ward to provide emergency treatment to patients suffering from respiratory problems due to the increasing air pollution in the city.

According to the data issued by the System of Air Quality Forecasting and Research (SAFAR-India), the current AQI in Mumbai was recorded at 121.

State Minister Deepak Kesarkar said on Wednesday that, in view of the deteriorating air quality in Mumbai, a lot of new initiatives are being taken by the corporation to reduce air pollution.

"The pollution level is above what is prescribed (in Mumbai), due to which a lot of new initiatives are being taken by the corporation. One of them is cleaning roads with water. The second is sprinkling water on construction sites. Fogging guns, which spray water into the air, are also being used to reduce air pollution," Kesarkar told ANI. (ANI)