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Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh and the Jind and Karnal districts of Haryana have a reason to rejoice now. These three districts got bigger as the nod has been given to include them under National Capital Region (NCR) ambit. 
 At a meeting of the <keyword id="6426738" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Capital-Region-Planning-Board">National Capital Region Planning Board</keyword> (NCRPB), <keyword id="168340" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Urban-Development-Minister">Urban Development Minister</keyword> M Venkaiah Naidu announced the decision. 
 <keyword id="6398939" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="haryana-chief-minister">Haryana Chief Minister</keyword> Manohar Lal Khattar, ministers of Delhi and Rajasthan governments and senior officials of the UP government were present for the said meeting. 
 
 
Naidu said that a committee has been appointed to look into the demands for the inclusion of more areas in NCR. 
 
"We have appointed a committee which will go into the aspects of what areas are to be included," he said. 
 The <keyword id="6358932" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Union-Minister">Union minister</keyword> said that before including any area, <keyword id="358683" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-View">the view</keyword> of the particular state government will also have to be taken. He added that a representation had come for the inclusion of Mathura in NCR which has now been referred to the committee and also to UP government, according to the PTI report. 
 
On the question of Mangar forest, Khattar said it was very important to ensure its preservation. 
 Naidu, on the other hand, also said that there was a discussion on the definition of 'Forest' during the meeting and the Union <keyword id="6356826" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="environment">Environment</keyword> and Forest secretary has been asked to seek the opinion of the <keyword id="43805" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Attorney-General">Attorney General</keyword> in this regard. 
 
He also said there was a suggestion that the Delhi-Alwar RRTS be taken up to Sota Nala, which is an industrial area. 
 
(Image: Times City)

​Now Muzaffarnagar, Jind and Karnal districts are a part of Delhi NCR

<ul><li>Supreme Court has decided to ban decade-old <keyword id="6451503" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Diesel-vehicles">diesel vehicles</keyword> and 15-year-old <keyword id="1433855" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="petrol-vehicles">petrol vehicles</keyword> as air quality plummets in the National Capital Region (NCR). </li></ul><ul><li>The Central Pollution Control Board has been asked to create a social media account immediately for the citizens to raise complaints regarding Delhi’s <keyword id="55910" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-Pollution">air pollution</keyword> so that corrective plans can be initiated by the concerned authorities. </li></ul><ul><li>The apex court stated that a list of all such vehicles should be published on the CPCB’s website. </li></ul>As Delhi’s air quality plummets, the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday decided to ban the operation of 10-year-old diesel vehicles and 15-year-old petrol vehicles in the National Capital Region (NCR). The air quality in the NCR has been degrading tremendously and matters are only going to get worse as winter settles in. Most of the monitoring stations in Delhi <a href="https://app.cpcbccr.com/AQI_India/">recorded ‘severe’ pollution</a> on Monday. The overall <keyword id="2071721" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-Quality-Index">Air Quality Index</keyword> for the National Capital showed <a href="http://safar.tropmet.res.in/map_data.php?city_id=3&amp;for=current">375</a> in the evening, which was slightly better than <a href="http://safar.tropmet.res.in/map_data.php?city_id=3&amp;for=current">381</a> on Sunday afternoon. The Supreme Court has asked the transport department to confiscate all those vehicles on the banned list if found on roads. Considering the current condition of pollution in the <keyword id="157098" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi-NCR">Delhi-NCR</keyword> region, the court also said that the matter should be advertised well in the newspaper and a list of such vehicles should be published on the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) website. Also, the CPCB has been asked to create a social media account on an immediate basis for the citizens to raise complaints related to pollution issues so as the concerned authorities can take remedial actions at the earliest. The SC accorded the Environment Prevention &amp; Control Authority (EPCA) to take preventive steps under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which was proposed to tackle air-pollution in Delhi-NCR region when air quality deteriorates. The amicus, referring to the note prepared by the EPCA Chairman, contained the details and photographs of garbage burning in several regions across the region including parts of Dwarka, Mundka and Bawana. The bench also referred to the media reports that stated that people should not go on morning walks due to high levels of pollution in the region. In response to the photographs, the bench asked the Delhi Government and Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd to file their affidavits within the next two days. The Court passed its directives after a note was placed before it by advocate Aparajita Singh, who has been assisting the Court in the air-pollution matters, seeking an urgent corrective plan for the current situation. In a conversation with <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/sc-bans-15-yr-old-petrol-10-yr-old-diesel-vehicles-in-ncr-due-to-pollution-118102900615_1.html">Business Standard</a>, Singh stated that the farmers alone shouldn’t be blamed for pollution due to crop burning since the pollution from transport vehicles was recorded to be 41%, as reported by the Ministry of Earth Sciences. The matter has been posted for a hearing on 1 November. Earlier in 2015, National Green Tribunal (NGT) had also banned the plying of such vehicles on Delhi roads but the court had rejected the plea against the NGT.

Damage control: India’s top court bans 10-year old diesel vehicles, 15-year old petrol vehicles in NCR

<ul><li>India is gearing up its missile defense shield over the national capital region of Delhi with a combination of indigenous, Russian, Israeli and US missile systems.</li><li>The <keyword id="7740159" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="national-advanced-surface-to-air-missile-system-ii">National Advanced Surface to Air Missile system II</keyword> (<keyword id="7734797" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="NASAMS-2">NASAMS 2</keyword>), will form the fifth layer of a multilayered missile defense shield for NCT.</li><li>Combined with indigenous Prithvi interceptor missiles, Russian S-400, INDO-ISRAELI joint venture Barak-8 long range SAM, Akash area defense <keyword id="42531" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Missile-system">missile system</keyword>, the NASAMS 2 is set to make the capital impenetrable.</li></ul>India's ministry of defense is moving swiftly at acquiring the National Advanced Surface to Air Missile System II (NASAM II) from the US,<a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/india-to-acquire-us-air-defence-system-for-multi-tier-missile-shield-over-delhi/articleshow/69717946.cms"> Times of India reported.</a> Defence ministry sources <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/india-to-acquire-us-air-defence-system-for-multi-tier-missile-shield-over-delhi/articleshow/69717946.cms">told TOI</a> that the US is likely to send the final draft of “letter of acceptance” for sale of NASAMS 2 worth ₹ 6,000 ($1 billion) under its foreign military sales programme to INDIA, by July-August. Shielding of NCT of Delhi The proposed multi layered shield for the security of the NCT of Delhi is expected to have five layers. The first being equipped with two tier of AAD (advanced <keyword id="431465" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="air-defence">air defence</keyword>) and PAD (Prithvi Air Defence) interceptor missile system. The second layer is to be equipped with the Russian made triumph surface to air S 400 missile system. The third layer is to be equipped with the Barak-8 medium &amp; long range surface to air missile system jointly developed by Israeli Aerospace Industries and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), India. The fourth layer is to be equipped with the indigenous area defence missile system AKASH. The fifth layer of missile shield is to be equipped with the NASAMS 2 missile system. NASAMS 2 Geared to track and destroy small incoming targets and shoot around buildings, NASAMS 2 is a quick reaction networked system of Stingers, gun systems, AMRAAM missiles along with the MPQ64 Sentinel Air Defense radar and indigenously developed Battle management C4I system that works as Fire Distribution System. Counter to China and Pakistan As a secret deal is underway between China and Pakistan for the development and manufacturing of advanced fighter jets in Pakistan,<a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/india-to-acquire-us-air-defence-system-for-multi-tier-missile-shield-over-delhi/articleshow/69717946.cms"> India’s claims of BRI </a>being an initiative typically for the expansion and advancing of Chinese military goals has surfaced again. Pentagon’s 2019 Missile Defence Review (MDR) has termed China as having the most active land-based ballistic and cruise missile programme in the world. This is an indication for India to work on securing its vital military and non military assets, like major population centres. The Indo in the Indo-pacific The US, in 2018 termed India as its major defense partner and soon after named its Pacific command as Indo-Pacific command, considering the vital role India can play in the region’s stability and in the South China sea as well. The deal for NASAMS 2 is not to be merely looked as just another of such deals. It projects to the world, the very core role India is going to play to keep stable not only south east asia but also the indo-pacific, south china sea and the middle east, <a href="https://www.orfonline.org/research/where-would-india-fit-in-a-missile-defense-partnership-in-the-indo-pacific-47582/">say</a> experts.

India will add a fifth layer of missiles to protect its national capital region

<ul><li><keyword id="6358200" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="jet-airways">Jet Airways</keyword>’ ₹85 billion <keyword id="6359987" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Resolution">resolution</keyword> plan was given a shot in the arm yesterday, after <keyword id="6437601" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="etihad">Etihad</keyword> agreed to pump a fresh round of capital into the struggling airline. </li><li>As a result, Jet’s share price on the Bombay Stock Exchange rose 2% in early trading this morning. </li><li>In order to keep Jet afloat for the time being, Etihad was being courted by Jet’s owner <keyword id="122732" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Naresh-Goyal">Naresh Goyal</keyword> for a ₹7.5 billion investment. However, sources told the Press Trust of India that Etihad’s investment could be in the region of ₹16-₹19 billion.</li></ul> Jet Airways’ <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/jet-airways-chairman-naresh-goyal-steps-down/articleshow/68212261.cms">₹85 billion resolution plan </a>was given a shot in the arm late on March 11th, after Etihad agreed to pump a fresh round of capital into the struggling airline. As a result, Jet’s share price on the Bombay Stock Exchange rose 2% in early trading on March 12th. In order to keep Jet afloat for the time being, Etihad was being courted by Jet’s owner Naresh Goyal for <a href="https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/jet-airways-crisis-naresh-goyal-seeks-rs-750-crore-in-funding-from-etihad-1552306953342.html">a ₹7.5 billion</a> investment. This is equivalent to the interim funding that Jet’s creditors are willing to extend to the airline. However, sources told <a href="https://www.livemint.com/">the Press Trust of India </a>that Etihad’s investment could be in the region of ₹16 billion-₹19 billion, raising its stake by 0.9 percentage points to 24.9% and giving it two additional board seats. This, in addition, to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/pnb-gives-jet-emergency-loan-of-20-5-billion-rupees-as-resolution-talks-continue/articleshow/68352446.cms">a ₹20.5 billion</a> loan from Punjab National Bank is aimed at helping the airline tide over while a resolution and restructuring plan is finalised. For the past few weeks, the consortium of creditors finalising Jet’s bailout have been pushing for Etihad’s participation - not only in terms of an investment, but also in taking operational control as Jet’s owner Naresh Goyal <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/jet-airways-chairman-naresh-goyal-steps-down/articleshow/68212261.cms">has decided to step down</a>. Whatever the eventual amount, the investment from Etihad, which is pending the approval of the board of the UAE-based airline, comes with some rigid conditions. It will reportedly be secured against 15% of the shares of Jet’s loyalty programme subsidiary, Jet Privilege Pvt. Ltd. It will also be contingent on the completion of the full round of interim financing of ₹40 billion by Jet’s creditors and promoters. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/pnb-gives-jet-emergency-loan-of-20-5-billion-rupees-as-resolution-talks-continue/articleshow/68352446.cms">Punjab National Bank has reportedly given Jet a ₹20.5 billion lifeline to keep it airborne</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/jet-airways-chairman-naresh-goyal-steps-down/articleshow/68212261.cms">Jet’s chairman finally agrees to step down, paving way for bank-led bailout</a>

Etihad finally caves in creditor and promoter demands to invest in Jet

In late 2015, I noticed that the subway stop that I took everyday to work had been renamed. The MG Road <keyword id="6356415" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Metro">metro</keyword> station, in the <keyword id="6371638" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="national-capital-region">National Capital Region</keyword>’s Gurugram, was rechristened the Syska LED MG Road station. Billboards of Syska, a lighting and technology company, were plastered all over the station. What’s more, the next two stations on the Yellow line into <keyword id="66" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Delhi">Delhi</keyword> had also been renamed. Another station, Guru Dronacharya, had been taken over by Indigo, an airline, while the Sikanderpur station was renamed Bank of Baroda Sikanderpur station. In search of non-fare sources of revenue, the Delhi Metro Railway Corporation (DMRC) has sold the naming rights to a total of 43 stations across the National Capital region since 2014, including <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/dmrc-eyes-ad-revenue-by-renaming-14-stations/articleshow/63946407.cms">14 new ones</a> on the upcoming Magenta and Pink lines. This is roughly a quarter of all its stations. Capitalism in action The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), has leased the naming rights to each station to the highest bidder via an online tendering process. The contract is usually valid for 10 years, so the titles of the stations are, in theory, subject to change. The rights to the stations mentioned above were bought by Pioneer Publicity, an outdoor advertising agency, and sold to the respective firms. It’s a win-win situation. The move provides a much needed source of advertising revenue for the authorities, especially as <keyword id="6492935" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ridership">ridership</keyword> has declined in recent months after two fare hikes in quick succession. The average daily ridership of the metro fell from 2.8 million in the previous financial year to <a href="http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/delhi-metro-fare-hike-ridership-down-but-earnings-up/">2.57 million in 2017-2018</a>. Securing the naming rights to a metro station is also a solid way to generate brand awareness for any company. The cumulative ridership of the Delhi Metro <a href="http://www.delhimetrorail.com/press_reldetails.aspx?id=ZlXC4jMrU00lld">crossed 1 billion people</a> in 2016-2017. That’s a lot of eyeballs. Not only do they get to the name the station, but they can also use the best advertising spaces within and outside the station as well deck the station in their brand colours - the Sikanderpur station is now orange. Similarly, the privately-owned Rapid Metro transit system in Gurugram has also sold the rights to some of its stations to buyers like Vodafone and Micromax. The Bangalore Metro authority is also negotiating <a href="http://www.dnaindia.com/business/report-ikea-infosys-take-bengaluru-delhi-metro-ride-2593584">deals with Ikea and Infosys</a> for naming and leasing rights to stations. The DMRC should pass on some of the benefits to customers by using the funds generated to improve its services, adding two more compartments to each six-carriage train and freezing fares.

India's second oldest Metro rail is allowing companies to brand stations amid declining ridership

By Yoshita Singh(Eds: Updating with more details) New York, Apr 29 () Three eminent Indian-Americans, including Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga, will be part of an advisory board formed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to help guide the state's strategy to gradually re-open the business and institutions amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as it continues to witness a declining trend in the number of cases.New York is the epicentre of the pandemic in the US and currently has 295,106 COVID-19 cases with over 17,000 deaths. On Tuesday, 337 people died of the disease in the state.The New York Forward Re-Opening Advisory Board will be chaired by the governor's former secretaries Steve Cohen and Bill Mulrow and includes over 100 business, community and civic leaders from industries across the state.Banga is also among the American business leaders chosen by US President Donald Trump to offer recommendations on how to revive the American economy ravaged by the deadly coronavirus.Besides him, Chair of advisory firm Tandon Capital Associates Chandrika Tandon and President and CEO of Hotel Association of New York City Vijay Dandapani are also part of the advisory board constituted by the New York governor."We've come up with a phased plan to re-open New York so every region in the state has the same opening template as we begin this process," Cuomo said."We have to be smart about this - emotions can't drive our re-opening process - and we've come up with factual data points that each region must monitor as they begin to re-open," he said, adding that the board will help guide the state in the re-opening process and ensure businesses are following the necessary guidelines to preserve public health.Banga has been the Mastercard's CEO for 10 years and in February, the payments giant announced that he will step down from his role and assume charge as executive chairman of the board of directors from January 1, 2021.A recognised leader in the worlds of business, education and arts, Tandon is also an acclaimed composer and vocalist and a Grammy-nominated artist. Her album 'Soul Call' had earned her a Grammy nomination.Tandon's advisory firm Tandon Capital Associates focuses on measurable transformation of institutions to excellence. At New York University (NYU), she is Vice-Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chair of the NYU President's Global Council and Chair of the NYU Tandon School of Engineering Board of Overseers.She is a member of the President's Circle of the National Academies, the President's Council on International Activities at Yale University, and the President's Advisory Council of the Berklee College of Music, where Berklee-Tandon Global Clinics connect faculty to underprivileged talent worldwide, according to her profile on the NYU website.Dandapani is a hotel industry veteran, who was recognised in 1998 as one of the Crain's New York Business top 100 minority business leaders in the New York City. In 2002, the Asian American Business Development Center, New York, selected him as one of the 50 outstanding Asian Americans in Business. He is an alumnus of Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration.On Tuesday, Cuomo said that the state continues to record a decline in total hospitalizations and intubations.The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations was 900. It was below the 1,000 mark for the first time in over a month, down from over 3,000 on April 4, proving that the outbreak was waning in the state.Cuomo stressed that the state will have to gradually begin the re-opening process because "you can't sustain being closed. The economy can't sustain it. Individual families can't sustain it. We can't sustain it on a personal level. Our children can't sustain it."He said the state is adopting a set of rules and guidelines to re-open and under this it is essential to ensure that the hospital system is not overwhelmed."If the hospital system in an area exceeds 70 per cent capacity, which means you only have 30 per cent left, or if the transmission rate hits 1.1, those are danger signs," he said.Outlining additional guidelines for the phased plan to re-open New York on a regional basis, Cuomo said based on CDC recommendations, once a region experiences a 14-day decline in the hospitalization rate, they may begin a phased re-opening.Businesses in each region will re-open in phases, he said, adding that phase one will include opening construction and manufacturing functions with low risk, phase two will open certain industries based on priority and risk level."Businesses considered 'more essential' with inherent low risks of infection in the workplace and to customers will be prioritized, followed by other businesses considered 'less essential' or those that present a higher risk of infection spread. Regions must not open attractions or businesses that would draw a large number of visitors from outside the local area," he said. Further, each business and industry must have a plan to protect employees and consumers, make the physical work space safer and implement processes that lower the risk of infection in the business.Regions must also implement a testing regimen that prioritizes symptomatic persons and conducts frequent tests of frontline and essential workers.There must also be at least 30 contact tracers for every 100,000 people and the region must also monitor the regional infection rate throughout the re-opening plan. YAS RS AKJ RS

COVID-19: Three Indian-Americans part of advisory board on New York's re-opening strategy

Several coal-fired power plants, including those in the national capital region, are likely to have missed the revised deadline to retrofit equipment to curb air pollution, industry estimates showed.
 A total of 47.95 gigawatts thermal power capacity missed the December 31, deadline to install Flue Gas Desulphurization (FDG) units to minimise SO2 emissions, the estimates prepared by private power producers showed.
 These include coal-fired units in the national capital region.
 Coal-fired power plants, which produce three-quarters of India's electricity, account for some 80 per cent of industrial emissions of sulfur and nitrous-oxides, which cause lung diseases and smog.
 Power plants were asked to install FGD units, which cut emissions of sulfur dioxides, in phases. In all 440 coal-fired plans that produce 166.5 GW have to comply with the regulation by December 2022. More than one-third of these had to retrofit equipment by December 2019.
 The power plants that missed the deadline to cut emission levels across the country included 33 units with a total capacity of 18.12 GW in Haryana, Punjab and <keyword id="6357713" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uttar-Pradesh">Uttar Pradesh</keyword>. Another 20 units with a total capacity of 11.3 GW are located in southern states of <keyword id="37102" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Andhra-Pradesh">Andhra Pradesh</keyword>, <keyword id="68884" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Telangana">Telangana</keyword>, and <keyword id="20154" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="tamil-nadu">Tamil Nadu</keyword>, the estimates showed. In addition, 7 units of capacity 8.04 GW operated by private firms located in Haryana and Punjab are expected to miss the deadline, the estimates showed.
 The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had previously set December 2017 as the deadline for meeting the emission standards but extended it by two years as the country adopted a phased approach for thermal power plants to comply with emission norms, which involve installing FGD units that cut emissions of sulfur dioxides.
 If the plants are not compliant within the December 31, 2019 deadline, CPCB has the authority to take the necessary action as per the law and court guidance, industry sources said.
 The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change had on December 7, 2015, brought out new norms for coal-based power stations to cut down emissions of particulate matter (PM10), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) to improve the air quality around power plants.
 To meet the new emission norms, the installation of the FGD system was essential in new as well as existing thermal power plants.
 Sources said a handful of plants had complied with the norm but most have missed the deadline. As many as 267 units, which produce 103.4 GW of power, have to be compliant between December 2019 and February 2022.
 In the national capital region, only two of the 33 coal-fired units, which produce some 12.79 GW of power, have installed FGD units so far. ANZ 
DRR

Several power plants in India miss deadline for emission norms compliance

<ul><li>The <keyword id="69419" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Central-Board-of-Secondary-Education">Central Board of Secondary Education</keyword> (<keyword id="6356155" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="cbse">CBSE</keyword>) will conduct fresh exams for students who have not been able to appear for papers in other parts of the national capital due to the violence in northeast Delhi.</li><li>The communal violence over the amended citizenship law in northeast Delhi has claimed 34 lives so far and left over 200 people injured.</li></ul>The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) will conduct fresh exams for students who have not been able to appear for papers in other parts of the national capital due to the violence in northeast Delhi, officials said. The board has sought details of students who failed to appear for exams due to the prevailing situation in the city. "The board has asked school principals to send the details to regional offices concerned of the CBSE of all such students of class 10, 12 who have missed out on the exams so far in Delhi, due to these difficult conditions," CBSE Secretary Anurag Tripathi said. "To reduce the stress on students, the board will conduct fresh exams for these students. The next date of exam for affected students will be notified shortly," he added. The communal violence over the amended citizenship law in northeast Delhi has claimed 34 lives so far and left over 200 people injured. GJS SNE

CBSE to conduct fresh exams for students who couldn't appear for exams due to Delhi violence

<ul><li>As <keyword id="55910" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-Pollution">air pollution</keyword> levels continue to worsen in India’s national capital and its surrounding area, New Delhi has decided to observe ‘Clean Air Week’ between 1 November to 5 November.</li><li>52 teams along with the support of local police and representatives from Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) will be coming together for the campaign.</li><li>The campaign will cover New Delhi and the surrounding areas of the National Capital Region (NCR)— Faridabad, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Noida.</li></ul>The air quality in India’s national capital, New Delhi, has become a major challenge <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/toxic-air-killed-highest-number-of-children-in-india-in-2016-who-report/articleshow/66446692.cms">threatening millions of lives</a>. The growing concern for air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR) has pushed the government to organise a Clean Air Week from 1 November to 5 November. It’s an initiative by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in collaboration with the Delhi government and the other NCR cities, in order to combat the worsening conditions. Clean Air Week, scheduled just ahead of <keyword id="188" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Diwali">Diwali</keyword>, will bring together <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/clean-air-week-52-teams-supported-by-local-police-to-be-on-ground-in-delhi-4-neighbouring-cities/articleshow/66451468.cms">52 teams</a> along with the local police to take action against polluters in New Delhi and its neighbouring cities including Gurugram, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad from this Thursday. Teams have also been formed to ensure safety on the roads of Delhi-NCR. Each team would have a senior official from MoEFCC and representatives from Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). 44 of these teams are based out of Delhi and other cities will have 2 teams each supported by the local police. The teams will also ensure that the repeat offenders are taken seriously by ensuring criminal proceedings and that citizens abide by the <a href="https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/firecracker-ban-firecrackers-other-than-green-crackers-will-not-be-sold-in-delhi-ncr-supreme-court/307240">restrictions on placed on fireworks</a>. The Indian Supreme Court has directed that citizens in Delhi-NCR can only burst crackers between 8 PM and 10 PM during Diwali, one of India’s most popular Hindu festivals. And, people can’t just burst any old firecrackers, they have to be ‘<a href="https://news.google.com/articles/CBMihgFodHRwczovL3d3dy5pbmRpYXRvZGF5LmluL21haWwtdG9kYXkvc3RvcnkvZ3JlZW4tY3JhY2tlcnMtc2hvcGtlZXBlcnMtZGVsaGktbm9pZGEtc3VwcmVtZS1jb3VydC1lY28tZnJpZW5kbHktZGl3YWxpLTEzNzkxNTEtMjAxOC0xMC0zMdIB1AFodHRwczovL3d3dy1pbmRpYXRvZGF5LWluLmNkbi5hbXBwcm9qZWN0Lm9yZy92L3Mvd3d3LmluZGlhdG9kYXkuaW4vYW1wL21haWwtdG9kYXkvc3RvcnkvZ3JlZW4tY3JhY2tlcnMtc2hvcGtlZXBlcnMtZGVsaGktbm9pZGEtc3VwcmVtZS1jb3VydC1lY28tZnJpZW5kbHktZGl3YWxpLTEzNzkxNTEtMjAxOC0xMC0zMT9hbXBfanNfdj0wLjEjd2Vidmlldz0xJmNhcD1zd2lwZQ?hl=en-IN&amp;gl=IN&amp;ceid=IN%3Aen">green fireworks</a>’. The meeting held under the chairmanship of Union Environment Secretary, CK Mishra, proposed certain urgent steps that can be taken to address the issue. The Delhi government has also been asked to deploy 400 sprinklers as a backup to mitigate any crisis. In addition, construction sites in area have been instructed to shut down temporarily. Even trucks carrying construction and demolition waste aren’t allowed to move around the city uncovered. And if they do, the trucks will be confiscated. Mishra’s proposal also stated that the authorities will have to ensure that there is no burning of industrial waste and biomass fuel. Since of one the main problems in Delhi is its burgeoning traffic, it has also been advised that the Delhi traffic police launch a special drive for lane driving. District magistrates have be enrolled to ensure security and safety in their respective areas. The CPCB teams will be monitoring the <keyword id="2071721" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Air-Quality-Index">air quality index</keyword> in Delhi and NCR region while the campaign will continue till 5 November. It has been emphasised that all the necessary steps must be taken to ensure that air quality levels don’t plummet even further.

‘Clean Air Week’ — India to deploy emergency measures for controlling air pollution

<ul class="summary-list"><li>New York's transit agency, the Metropolitan <keyword id="34991" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="transportation">Transportation</keyword> Authority, says it needs $12 billion in emergency federal aid to fund itself through 2021. </li><li><keyword id="6443197" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="subways">Subways</keyword> and <keyword id="6359670" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Buses">buses</keyword> are vital to New York's $1.8 trillion economy — if the transit network fails, the entire region could suffer.</li><li>But that's not all. Experts, activists, and transit officials warn that not funding New York transit could deal a devastating blow to the nation's financial health and recovery.</li></ul>New York's transit system is in a financial crisis, and to anyone outside of the New York metropolitan area, that probably sounds like someone else's problem. But experts disagree. Dependable, robust mass transit is vital to New York's economic health and recovery, and if the agency is left high and dry, many say the entire country's economy will suffer. Right now, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority — which runs New York's buses, subways, and commuter trains — needs billions in federal aid. It received close to $4 billion in March through the CARES Act, but that money dried up quickly. The May HEROES Act would have given the <keyword id="170979" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="MTA">MTA</keyword> and other transit agencies a fresh round of funding, but the package stalled in the Senate.<div type="image" title="mta new york city subway conductor" height="683" width="1024" msid="78335653" hostid="261"></div>As the MTA grapples with an increasingly dire financial outlook brought on by the pandemic, the agency is sounding the alarm about extreme cost-cutting measures it'll be forced to pursue without a lifeline from the federal government. But the cuts couldn't come at a worse time, according to transit advocates and policy experts. A deterioration of the subway, they say, would have a ripple effect throughout the country. <h2>Without emergency funding, the MTA might need to decimate service, cut jobs, and stall vital construction projects</h2>At a board meeting in late August, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nyc-subway-service-cuts-coming-mta-warns-without-aid-2020-8">the MTA warned</a> it would need to slash service and table major infrastructure-improvement projects without $12 billion in emergency funding. The aid would carry the floundering agency through 2021 — without it, drastic changes, including job cuts, could come <a href="http://www.mta.info/press-release/mta-headquarters/transcript-mta-chairman-foye-appears-reuters-newsmaker%E2%80%99s-mobility">as soon as this fall</a>. Under the <a href="https://new.mta.info/document/19481">doomsday plan</a>, the agency would need to cut subway and bus service by up to 40%, leading wait times to balloon by up to eight minutes on subways and as much as 15 minutes on buses. An estimated 7,200 employees would lose their jobs. The city's commuter rails, tasked with transporting workers from nearby suburbs to New York's central business district, would suffer an even worse fate. The MTA said it may need to cut service in half, spacing Long Island Railroad and Metro-North trains at 60-minute or 120-minute intervals and possibly shutting down some routes entirely. Meanwhile, the MTA said not receiving the federal funding could pause projects from its <a href="https://new.mta.info/budget/MTA-capital-plan-summary">$51.5 billion Capital Plan</a> — a long-overdue investment into things like modernization, line expansions, and accessibility upgrades — scheduled for 2020 through 2024. <div type="image" title="New York Subway coronavirus" height="1667" width="2500" msid="78335656" hostid="261"></div>The MTA itself, as part of its latest push for emergency tax dollars, has contended that its well-being is a national concern deserving of a federal solution. Data shows that in addition to the MTA's indirect financial impact, the agency directly does business with vendors from nearly every US state."Not only does investment in the MTA benefit New York City, the New York City business community, New York State and the tri-state region, but it also benefits the national interest," MTA Chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye told <a href="http://www.mta.info/press-release/mta-headquarters/transcript-mta-chairman-foye-appears-reuters-newsmaker%E2%80%99s-mobility">Reuters</a> recently. "It's in the national government's interest to fund this because of the importance of New York and the importance of the MTA to New York."<h2>The proposed cuts reflect a severe financial crisis at New York's transit authority</h2>The proposed cuts, unprecedented as they may be, reflect the severity of the financial crisis New York's transit system faces. The MTA was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/05/nyregion/mta-police-officers-subway-plan.html">no stranger to financial distress</a> before the pandemic hit, but in March, its ridership <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/nyregion/coronavirus-nyc-subway-federal-aid-.html">plummeted virtually overnight</a>, decimating farebox revenues and sending the agency into free fall. Subway ridership <a href="http://www.mta.info/press-release/mta-headquarters/icymi-mta-chairman-and-ceo-patrick-j-foye-and-twu-president-john">dropped by 93%</a> at the height of the outbreak in New York. And although straphangers have slowly returned to transit as the city has creaked open, ridership on subways had only reached <a href="http://www.mta.info/press-release/mta-headquarters/transcript-mta-chairman-foye-appears-reuters-newsmaker%E2%80%99s-mobility">around a quarter of normal levels in early September, and buses were still down 50%.</a> The Long Island Railroad and Metro-North have also been slow to bounce back, now seeing approximately <a href="https://new.mta.info/coronavirus/ridership">25% and 20%</a> of their typical weekday ridership levels, respectively. <div type="image" title="AP20150677624788" height="1666" width="2500" msid="78335661" hostid="261"></div>The MTA received $3.9 billion in funding through the CARES Act in March, but it blew through that money <a href="http://www.mta.info/press-release/mta-headquarters/transcript-mta-chairman-foye-appears-reuters-newsmaker%E2%80%99s-mobility">by late July</a>. Now, with the agency hemorrhaging <a href="https://gothamist.com/news/mta-losing-200-million-every-week-thanks-fiscal-tsunami-caused-pandemic">$200 million per week</a> and no followup stimulus bill in sight, it's pleading for another infusion of cash.<h2>The MTA is vital to New York's massive economy</h2>A $12 billion allowance would be a drop in the bucket of any trillion-dollar stimulus package, and many experts and advocates say that, in this case, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Saving New York's transit system from ruin, they say, is essential to clawing the city — and the nation at large — out of the current economic recession.With its approximately <a href="https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/understanding-americas-enormous-20-6t-economy-by-comparing-us-metro-area-gdps-to-entire-countries/">$1.8 trillion GDP</a> — comparable to that of Canada — the New York metropolitan area accounts for roughly 8% of the national economy, and the region's financial success is driven in large part by its robust transit system. In normal times, <a href="https://rpa.org/work/reports/essential-service">more than 3 million workers</a> use the MTA and other smaller transit agencies to get to work each day across the New York region. Millions more take <keyword id="1591002" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Public-transit">public transit</keyword> for non-work-related trips. <div type="image" title="New York City Bus Coronavirus" height="1667" width="2500" msid="78335665" hostid="261"></div>New York's strength lies in its density, multiple experts told Business Insider, and that's not possible without strong public transit. The city's jam-packed central business district only thrives because of its expansive transit system, which can shuttle vast numbers of people to lower Manhattan and between meetings. "The benefit of New York is that it's the only place where you have an abundance of face-to-face contact, and the reason it's possible is because of mass transit," Mitchell Moss, a professor of urban policy and planning at New York University, told Business Insider. "In Los Angeles, you might be able to have three physical face-to-face meetings a day. In New York, you can have eight."Nicole Gelinas, a senior fellow at urban-policy think tank the Manhattan Institute, said although many white-collar workers have made due working remotely for months, Manhattan's ultra-high-density business district will remain an important driver of economic activity."The entire point of being in Manhattan was you can walk to meetings," she said. "You can have many, many meetings every day with your potential vendors, your customers, your competitors. So if you're going to try to recreate that in suburban office parks or work-at-home, you will see a less productive economy five years, 10 years from now."<div type="image" title="Metro North railroad coronavirus" height="683" width="1024" msid="78335669" hostid="261"></div>Another key to New York's prosperity is that it draws its workforce not just from within the city limits, but also from neighboring areas served by the MTA and other outfits. Of the roughly 2 million people who worked in Manhattan's central business district before <keyword id="8763838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid-19">COVID-19</keyword>, <a href="https://rpa.org/latest/lab/transportation-system-new-york-returns-to-work">more than 600,000</a> commuted from New Jersey, Long Island, Southwest Connecticut, or the Hudson Valley. The overwhelming majority took transit. Transit will only become more vital to the New York economy during this time of mass unemployment, multiple experts told Business Insider. Although the city's cost of living is high, its robust, low-cost system of subways and buses creates a low barrier of entry to the workforce. In other parts of the country, Gelinas said, one might need to spend thousands of dollars annually financing and maintaining a car just to get to work. In New York, you can commute on subways and buses for around $1,500 per year. <div type="image" title="AP20092675708526" height="1668" width="2500" msid="78335673" hostid="261"></div>In 2018, Gelinas <a href="https://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/new-yorks-economic-future-rides-its-subways-11339.html">studied</a> the importance of the MTA to workforce participation, determining that the subways "are both a cause and an effect of New York's labor-market boom.""New York's mass transit system — especially its subways — has been a crucial factor for encouraging and enabling more of the residents in the city's historically poorer neighborhoods to work," Gelinas wrote. "Any sustained deterioration in subway services endangers this success story."<div type="image" title="AP20223078045023" height="1667" width="2500" msid="78335677" hostid="261"></div>Abandoning or reducing capital projects, which the agency warned it would need to do without aid, could accelerate that deterioration. Multiple experts and activists warned of a "death spiral" — a vicious cycle of disrepair and disuse — that could hit the transit system if it winds up diminishing service too greatly. "If the system becomes far less useful and far less accessible, then it would lose more revenue," said Danny Pearlstein, policy and communications director for advocacy group Riders Alliance. "And so the MTA would find itself in an even worse position six months or a year from now. And so it might not be too long before there was no transit system."<div type="image" title="MTA subway construction new york city." height="684" width="1024" msid="78335682" hostid="261"></div>The MTA's capital endeavors constitute a significant source of economic activity for the region. The Partnership for New York City, an independent nonprofit organization, <a href="https://pfnyc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/MTA-Capital-Plan-2020-24-Econ-Impacts.pdf">analyzed</a> the MTA's capital investment plan for 2020 through 2024 and found it would create more than 57,000 jobs per year while spurring $62 billion in economic activity. In a <a href="https://rpa.org/work/reports/essential-service">recent report</a>, the Regional Plan Association, a prominent tri-state area planning group, argued that Congress should preserve the New York region's transit investments as a way of protecting its infrastructure and putting people to work. The RPA argued that capital programs from the MTA and other regional transit agencies could be cornerstone components of a national stimulus package similar to the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/works-progress-administration">Works Progress Administration</a> — a 1935 employment and infrastructure program under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which created millions of jobs during the Great Depression. "It's essential that we continue that capital program to employ construction personnel and the other folks that make those things happen," said Brian Fritsch, a manager of advocacy campaigns at the organization. "If those things go away, it's really dire for the region economically."<h2>The widespread ripple effects of the MTA's success or failure </h2>Experts, activists, and transit officials warn that the financial damage of not funding the MTA could spread far past the city and region.In addition to propping up New York's massively important economy, the MTA contributes directly to economies across the country, according to a <a href="https://reinventalbany.org/2020/06/watchdog-report-investing-in-the-mta-is-investing-in-america/">June report</a> from watchdog group Reinvent Albany. From 2011 to 2018, the organization found that the MTA spent close to $8 billion on vendors in states outside of New York State, including $1.6 billion in New Jersey, $1.4 billion in Pennsylvania, and $797 million in California. During the period studied, the MTA spent money in all but three US states, as well as Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. <div type="image" title="Metro north MTA NYC coronavirus" height="1686" width="2500" msid="78335687" hostid="261"></div>Advocates hope that emergency aid for the MTA will make it into a reauthorization of the FAST Act — <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/fastact/">a 2015 law that expires soon</a>, but originally authorized $305 billion in transportation aid over fiscal years 2016 through 2020 — or a bill to fund the federal government, both of which need congressional action by September 30.But with negotiations surrounding a second <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> stimulus bill stalled — Democrats proposed nearly <a href="https://www.masstransitmag.com/management/article/21137978/new-stimulus-package-introduced-by-house-democrats-includes-1575-billion-for-transit">$16 billion for transit agencies</a> in the May HEROES Act, but Republicans' latest plan included <a href="https://www.democrats.senate.gov/news/press-releases/schumer-floor-remarks-on-republicans-failure-to-provide-any-support-to-transit-systems-and-state-and-local-workers-suffering-because-of-covid-in-their-partisan-coronavirus-bill">no such funding</a> — the MTA and transit agencies across the country face an uncertain future. At a Wednesday board meeting, MTA officials said the agency may need to borrow $2.9 billion from the Federal Reserve for some short-term relief, on top of the $450 million it borrowed from the Fed in August. "There would be global economic impacts to the fact that people can't get to work in the financial and cultural capital of the United States," Pearlstein said. "There is literally no better investment in the nation's economic recovery than keeping New York humming [and] keeping riders able to quickly and reliably get around the city by the millions."It's a simple thing for Congress to send us $12 billion. Every other way out of this is far more complicated and painful."

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