No bidders for 6 AQI stations in Delhi; mid-November new target: Govt

Previously, the Delhi government set an August deadline, to make the stations fully operational before winter

The proposed installation of six continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) in Delhi has been delayed, as a tender issued in June received only a single bid, which was rejected. However, officials of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) said they have floated a fresh tender and they plan to operationalise the stations by mid-November.

Mist spraying for dust control in the Capital. (HT Archive)

Previously, the Delhi government set an August deadline, to make the stations fully operational before winter.

Delhi’s environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said: “Only one bid was received and did not qualify. A fresh tender has been floated with bids to open by September 15. Therefore, we intend to install these by November 15.”

Once operational, the city will have a total of 46 air quality monitoring systems.

As per the tender document, planned in April, the winning bidders will also operate and maintain the air quality index (AQI) stations for the next 10 years. Once awarded the contract, the DPCC and Delhi’s environment department will hand over the six sites for construction and operationalisation.

On April 26, HT reported that six upcoming AQI stations in relatively green areas—three inside green campuses of Jawaharlal Nehru University, Indira Gandhi National Open University and Netaji Subhash University, one station deep inside the Central Ridge at the ISRO Earth Station near Malcha Mahal, and two more in relatively green areas of Delhi Cantonment and the Commonwealth Games Sports Complex—may bring down the overall AQI.

An environment department official said that the sites will be free of encumbrances. “Based on the new timelines, work is planned to be completed by November 15. All necessary arrangements and adjustments for suitable installation and operation of the equipment will, however, be made by the bidder, including power supply, telephone, mobile and internet connections. DPCC will assist with the documents required,” an official said.

At present, 24 out of the 40 stations are run by DPCC, six by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), eight by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and two by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM). All six new stations will be under DPCC, but run and maintained by a third party.