PAC Pulls Up Delhi Government Over Pollution Monitoring Gaps

26 Mar 2026 CW Team

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has criticised the Delhi government for substantive gaps in air pollution monitoring and shortcomings in public transport services, noting risks to public health and urban mobility. The committee found that monitoring systems lacked maintenance and that data reporting was inconsistent, undermining policy responses to deteriorating air quality in the capital.

The PAC observed that several monitoring stations were offline at intervals and that instrument calibration and upkeep were inadequate, reducing the reliability of air quality readings. It found that data transparency was limited and that there was an absence of a robust mechanism for real time dissemination, which impeded timely advisories and long term planning by municipal and health authorities.

On public transport, the committee highlighted deficiencies in fleet upkeep, scheduling and integration that had led to commuter inconvenience and increased private vehicle use. The PAC noted that last mile connectivity remained weak and that the existing bus services did not offer sufficient frequency or reliability to shift travel behaviour at scale, thereby exacerbating congestion and emissions.

The PAC recommended that the government prioritise repair and expansion of monitoring infrastructure, introduce systematic calibration regimes and publish verified data through an accessible dashboard. It urged a review of procurement and maintenance practices for buses and staff training, and suggested accelerated adoption of low emission vehicles alongside improved route planning and payment integration.

The Delhi government was instructed to prepare a comprehensive action plan addressing the committee's concerns, with periodic progress reports to the PAC and clear accountability lines among agencies. The committee stressed that strengthened monitoring and better public transport services were essential to protect health and to deliver sustainable urban mobility for residents.

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