Delhi CM buys Rs 5.5 lakh worth of air purifiers after ‘traditional’, ‘green’ Diwali

The Delhi government has issued a work order for the installation of air purifiers at the Delhi Secretariat — just days after the Chief Minister publicly encouraged residents to celebrate a ‘traditional’ Diwali with fireworks. The move has drawn sharp criticism and accusations of hypocrisy, coming at a time when the capital’s air quality is not fit for habitation.

TMC leader and Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra, in a post on X, pointed her derision at the order for air purifiers at public expense after scant attention to the annual air pollution crisis in the capital.

According to a work order for ‘RMO E&M Services at Delhi Sachivalaya, New Delhi Sachivalaya during 2025–26’ issued by the PWD (public works department), the NCT government has sanctioned the supply and installation of 15 smart air purifiers across various locations in the Secretariat building. The total cost of the procurement stands at Rs 5,45,175, with each unit priced at Rs 36,345.

The order specifies that the purifiers must feature multistage air purification technology with at least three filters — pre-filter, activated carbon filter and ‘true HEPA’ technology — and be suitable for spaces of around 1,000 square feet.

The machines are required to have a minimum clean air delivery rate of 400 cubic metres per hour, along with real-time PM 2.5 measurement, 100 per cent ozone-free filtration (ozone is known to create free radicals) and noise levels under 66 decibels. Each unit will carry a one-year warranty.

The timing of the order has raised eyebrows, given that the chief minister recently made statements promoting a 'traditional' Diwali celebration and her government has made a point of backing approval for ‘green crackers’ — the same government that is now equipping its offices with air purifiers, a measure critics see as acknowledgment of the hazardous air conditions expected after the festival.

"The pre- and post-Diwali gap (between average AQI) this year is less compared to the previous year, even though firecrackers were allowed this time," Gupta said at a press conference.

She insisted that her government was taking all necessary steps with "greater alertness" to curb pollution.

While the Aam Aadmi Party and prior Congress/UPA governments in Delhi in previous years campaigned against the use of firecrackers per se, this year’s messaging marked a noticeable shift for the NCT regime.

The new procurement order has therefore raised hackles, representing an attempt to insulate government offices from the very pollution that ordinary citizens are exposed to, knowingly, by the government’s vaunted ‘cultural’ (and only incidentally, public health and safety) policies.

The Secretariat’s move to install air purifiers also underlines the widening gap between the government’s safety standards for administrative spaces and the city’s broader struggle with deteriorating air quality.

As the capital prepares for yet another smog-filled winter, the government’s mixed signals on pollution control continue to invite public scrutiny and debate over policy consistency.