600 PUC centres in Delhi shut due to AAP govt's internal churn: Congress

Delhi Congress chief Devender Yadav on Sunday said that 600 PUC centres, which check vehicles for their emission levels, have closed due to the AAP government's "internal churn", and lakhs of vehicles are plying on the road without pollution clearance certificates.

He said the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party should emulate the governance model of the Sheila Dikshit-led Congress dispensation to eradicate air pollution from the city, he said.

"Due to the Kejriwal government's internal churn, 600 PUC (Pollution Under Control) centres have been closed -- lakhs of vehicles ply on roads without getting pollution clearance certificates in the Capital," Delhi Congress chief Devender Yadav said.

Delhi Petrol Dealers' Association (DPDA) has been demanding the government revise the rates for Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates in the national capital. It recently shut down nearly 600 PUC centres functioning at petrol pumps, saying the hike announced recently was not commensurate with operational costs.

Devender Yadav said that during the Congress rule, no one had to worry about air pollution. The AAP government and the BJP are equally responsible for the dangerous level of air pollution in Delhi, he said.

He said the BJP has seven Members of Parliament from Delhi, eight MLAs and more than 100 Councillors in the Delhi Municipal Corporation (MCD) yet it is unable to come up with effective solutions to solve the problem of pollution.

Due to the Delhi government ignoring the ongoing strike of pollution control centers in the national capital for more than a week, the PUC certificates of lakhs of vehicles have expired, adding to the city's air pollution, he alleged.