The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) launched a scathing attack on the central government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for its perceived lack of a concrete action plan to combat the severe air pollution crisis in Northern India. In a press conference at the AAP party headquarters in New Delhi, Ms. Reena Gupta, the party's National Spokesperson, voiced serious concerns over the deteriorating air quality in the region.

Ms. Gupta emphasized that the entire Northern region is currently grappling with alarming levels of air pollution, particularly during the winter season. She pointed to a troubling statistic indicating that, as of 2019, a staggering 99.5% of districts in India failed to meet the World Health Organization's air quality guidelines, highlighting a pressing public health emergency.

The AAP National Spokesperson underscored that out of the 50 most polluted cities in the world, 39 are located in India, with 20 of them being under the governance of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh. In contrast to the perceived inaction by the central government, Ms. Gupta commended the Delhi government, led by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, for taking significant steps to address the air pollution issue. The Delhi government's measures, including shutting down polluting power plants and implementing an electric vehicle policy, have resulted in a 30% improvement in Delhi's air quality.

Furthermore, Ms. Gupta highlighted data from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), which showed that 70% of Delhi's air pollution originates from neighboring states, many of which are under BJP rule. The AAP's criticism extended to the shutdown of the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting Research (SAFAR) website after they raised concerns about pollution from outside Delhi. The website had been providing valuable information on the sources of pollution and their geographical origins.

The AAP made two key demands in response to the crisis. First, they called for a high-level meeting of Environment Ministers from Northern states to discuss and coordinate efforts to combat air pollution collectively. Second, they demanded the reopening of the SAFAR website to provide transparency and information on the sources of pollution. The party's stance is clear: the central government must take immediate and concrete actions to address the pressing issue of air pollution, as it significantly impacts the health and well-being of the population in Northern India.