A survey conducted by a digital community-based platform revealed that approximately 85% of Delhi-NCR residents owning personal or society generators fueled by diesel are resistant to converting them to CNG.
This resistance persists despite the Commission for Air Quality Management’s (CAQM) directives that banned the use of diesel generator sets from October 1 to December 31, 2023, as part of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) aimed at addressing air pollution in the area.
More than 22,000 residents from the Delhi National Capital Region, spanning Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad, and Ghaziabad, participated in the survey. To address worries regarding power interruptions in vital sectors across the NCR, the CAQM, in September, provided a three-month exemption allowing the use of DG sets specifically in nine crucial categories of emergency services until December 3.
The survey sought to know “How are you/your society complying with the diesel generator restrictions effective from October 1, as the GRAP guidelines for pollution control are in effect?”
“This survey question response shows that only 15 per cent of Delhi-NCR residents surveyed, who use diesel generators (personal or at society level), are likely to get it retrofitted to CNG by December 31, 2023, while 85 per cent are unwilling to comply with the new regulations,” it said. However, the survey indicates that 56 per cent of residents in Delhi and nearby areas do not intend to adhere to the December 31 deadline, putting them at risk of potential repercussions.
The primary hurdle in compliance appears to be financial, with 100 per cent of respondents citing they “do not have the requisite budget or funds” as the main reason for their unwillingness, the survey said. Fifteen per cent of respondents expressed the intent to retrofit their generators with CNG by the stipulated deadline.
(With inputs from PTI)
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