NEW DELHI, September 29, 2025 —Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Shri Devender Yadav said that Delhi Congress has been shouting from the roof top for the past 12 years that the main causes  Delhi’s air pollution were vehicular fumes and dust particles, and this aspect was highlighted by the BJP too when it was in the Opposition, but it was strange that the BJP was planning to take short-term measures like cloud seeding (artificial rains) to address Delhi’s tox air, particularly during the winter. He asked what was the Rekha Gupta Government doing in the past seven months to tackle air pollution on a permanent basis, instead of depending on ad hoc measures to bring temporary relief the toxic air.

Shri Devender Yadav said that it was surprising that the BJP Government  has approved a proposal with a budget of crores of rupees for five trials in association with IIT Kanpur to induce artificial rains to wash away the pollutants, though this test has been plagued by feasibility issues, high cost, environmental concerns and questions about its value as a short-term measure.

He said that what the Delhi Government should have done first thing  to check air pollution should have been to check unregulated flux of vehicles on the Capital’s roads and dust particles hanging in the atmosphere on account of the broken condition of roads, streets and construction activity without adhering to anti-pollution regulations, but the Rekha Gupta Government seemed to have taken no step towards addressing these issues.

Shri Devender Yadav said that despite concerns expressed by experts, environmentalists and Government departments, the Rekha Gupta Government’s decision to go ahead with the cloud seeding trials was to thwart  criticism during winter when the toxic air envelops the Capital to block sunlight for days together, though such short term measures will not bring a lasting solution to the air pollution, which can be addressed only if the Government takes steps to check vehicular and dust pollutants.

Shri Devender Yadav said that if the funds to be  used for cloud seeding experiments is diverted to address root-cause  like emission control and dust control, it will bring considerable relief from air pollution in the Capital in the long term. He said that artificial cloud seeding will also discharge toxins into the air like silver iodide, sodium chloride or potassium lodide, which will be harmful for the health of the people and the soil of the city, He said that the negatives of  artificial cloud seeding outweigh the positives  and the BJP Government should take lasting measures to save Delhi from the toxic air, which has been reducing the life span of the people, besides aggravating health issues among children and the elderly.