High density dust screens made mandatory for construction sites: Sirsa

New Delhi: Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa today said the government has strengthened dust pollution control measures by making the use of high-density dust screens mandatory at construction and demolition sites across the national capital.

According to new directions issued by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, green nets installed at construction and demolition sites must now have a minimum thickness of 100 GSM, with immediate effect.

The Minister said the decision was taken in view of the significant contribution of construction and demolition activities to dust pollution in Delhi. The order follows guidelines issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management regarding dust pollution control and inspection procedures for C&D projects.

The order follows directions issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), which laid down guidelines for dust pollution control and inspection SOPs for C&D projects.

The new specification addresses a critical compliance gap. While earlier directions already required the use of tarpaulin or green nets around under-construction buildings and over stored construction and demolition material, no minimum technical specification had been prescribed so far for the green net itself.

With the fixation of 100 GSM as the minimum standard, the Delhi government has now moved to ensure that dust barriers are not merely symbolic, but genuinely effective in containing particulate matter at source, said the statement.

Sirsa said, “High-density dust screens are essential for effective dust containment. By prescribing a minimum 100 GSM standard, the government is ensuring that dust mitigation at construction sites is practical, measurable and enforceable. This will improve compliance quality on the ground and help reduce fugitive dust emissions more effectively.”

The Minister said, “The Delhi government is committed to ensuring that every anti-pollution norm translates into visible action at the site level.”

The government is also advancing work on Dust Portal 2.0, which is envisioned to provide a centralised monitoring and control mechanism for all construction and demolition sites in Delhi, he said.