Delhi has approved 30 electric mechanised road sweeping machines to clean 609 kilometres of narrow roads across the Capital, in a new winter-pollution measure aimed at reducing dust on stretches that the existing fleet cannot adequately reach.
The Delhi Cabinet approved the procurement, with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi set to receive a grant to purchase, deploy and operate the machines, according to officials cited by The Indian Express. The machines will cover 854 roads across 250 wards, each with a right of way of less than 10 metres.
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has urged the Delhi government to deploy the machines by November, the report said. The initial rollout will be treated as a pilot to assess performance and identify operational difficulties before any larger deployment.
A senior ministry official said the smaller fleet would help authorities understand whether the machines could function effectively on Delhi’s narrow roads. Existing road-cleaning operations face obstructions from parked vehicles, pedestrians and other street activity. Officials said advance announcements would be needed so residents could move vehicles before cleaning begins.
The proposed fleet is part of a wider shortfall in Delhi’s mechanised road sweeping capacity. The Centre has estimated that the city requires 505 machines across different road categories, while its current fleet has 98 machines. Existing mechanised road sweeping machines cover only about 20-30% of the Capital’s roads, according to a senior ministry official.
The Centre’s assessment includes 246 small machines for roads narrower than 20 feet, 91 medium machines for roads between 20 and 60 feet, and 168 large machines for roads wider than 60 feet. The new procurement is focused on the smallest category, intended for roads with a right of way below 10 metres.
The 30 machines are estimated to cost about Rs 393.73 crore over 10 years, according to the Delhi government. Under technical and operational norms issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management in February, small machines must have an operating width of less than two metres and a hopper capacity below one cubic metre. They must operate for at least eight hours per shift and cover a minimum of 20 running kilometres.
The norms also require an integrated water-spraying system and particulate-matter filtration to suppress dust and prevent it from being released back into the air. New machines are required to be powered by electricity or compressed natural gas.
Road dust remains a significant pollution source in Delhi. An IIT-Kanpur study from 2016 found that road dust accounted for about 56% of the city’s annual PM10 emissions and 38% of its annual PM2.5 emissions. The Delhi government has also said that the current fleet is being operated in two shifts, with deep cleaning of all major roads targeted for completion by October 31.
The Cabinet approval also included real-time monitoring of PM2.5 and PM10 sources in collaboration with IIT-Delhi. The 30-machine deployment will now proceed as a pilot, with the authorities expected to assess its on-ground performance before deciding on wider coverage.
