Delhi air pollution: How Delhi Police uses drones to monitor construction sites and garbage burning

Every year around Diwali, Delhi’s air quality deteriorates severely, with the city often turning into a ‘gas chamber’. Several factors contribute to poor air quality in the national capital and neighboring cities during the winter season.

Farmers in Punjab and Haryana continue to burn crop residues left after harvest, causing clouds of smoke to spread over Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR), mixed with vehicle emissions, construction dust and burning garbage. Smoke from firecrackers also makes the situation worse during Diwali. Air quality during festive season Every year in mid-October and early November.

To tackle rising air pollution in the city, the Delhi government in June unveiled a 25-point strategy, Air Pollution Mitigation Plan-2025. The plan included use of technology, innovative solutions in partnership with top institutions like IITs, use of sprinklers and strict control on vehicle emissions.

The government will also use AI, GPS tracking, cloud computing and automated alerts for residents under the Air Pollution Mitigation Plan-2025.

Delhi Police and South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) have deployed drones equipped with high-resolution cameras and air quality sensors.

Government decides to monitor construction and garbage burning hotspots with drones control air pollution In 2024.

Drones for monitoring construction sites and garbage burning

Delhi Police has launched a high-tech system to monitor under-construction buildings to strengthen surveillance, detect irregularities and prevent accidents. Drones will be deployed to capture aerial footage of construction sites.

Last year, Delhi’s environment department had deployed drones at each of the 13 major hotspots to monitor pollution levels. Its objective was to collect real-time data on pollution sources under the 2024 Winter Action Plan.

According to a Times of India report, this year the government’s air pollution mitigation plan-2025 includes waste management, increasing green spaces, assessment of environmental policy implementation, transportation measures and industrial emission control.

To combat dust pollution, it is mandatory for construction companies to install rooftop sprinkler systems in all high-rise buildings.

The footage collected by the drone will be fed into an AI-based system. Drones can see sources of pollution, such as illegal burning of garbage or stubble, smoke from factories and areas with heavy traffic. With GPS tracking, authorities can locate the exact location and take immediate action.

Some areas, such as narrow streets, industrial areas, or river banks, are difficult to monitor manually. Therefore, drones can reach these places easily. This will help officials analyze patterns, due to pollution And plan control measures accordingly.

These systems will also create digital structural models of buildings under construction, detect construction beyond permissible limits and improper material management.

All construction sites exceeding 500 square meters will have to be registered on the portal, and every worker will receive training on anti-dust pollution measures.

The data will help authorities check whether construction sites are following rules, such as using water spray to control dust or covering piles of materials to prevent them.