Air quality worsens in Delhi, AQI settles in 'severe' zone
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi battled toxic fumes on Sunday as the air quality slipped into the 'severe' category with a reading of 459, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.
A thick layer of smog blanketed the city overnight, leaving people gasping for air.
As per the CPCB, an Air Quality Index (AQI) between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 to 100 'satisfactory', 101 to 200 'moderate', 201 to 300 'poor', 301 to 400 'very poor' and 401 to 500 'severe'.
On the weather front, the minimum temperature settled at 8.2 degrees Celsius, 0.4 notch below the season's average, and the maximum temperature is likely to hover around 24 degrees Celsius.
The relative humidity was 100 per cent at 8.30 am, the IMD said.
In light of the deteriorating air quality in the national capital, the Delhi Directorate of Education on Saturday directed all schools to conduct classes for students up to Class IX and XI in a hybrid mode
The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has invoked Stage-IV actions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) with immediate effect to curb further worsening of air pollution levels in Delhi-NCR.
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Spurious ointment racket busted; Delhi Police recovers material worth Rs 2 crore from Ghaziabad unit
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has busted a major interstate racket allegedly involved in the manufacture, repackaging and nationwide sale of spurious Schedule-H medicines, an official said on Sunday.
Police have also located a manufacturing unit and seized counterfeit drugs and raw material worth over Rs 2.3 crore.
According to the police, two men -- Gaurav Bhagat, a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad, and Shree Ram alias Vishal Gupta of northeast Delhi's Sabhapur -- have been arrested in the case, he said.
"The operation was carried out by the Crime Branch. The accused were engaged in producing and selling counterfeit versions of popular prescription ointments, including Betnovate-C and Clop-G, which are widely used for treating skin infections, allergies and sports-related injuries," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Aditya Gautam said in a statement.
The officer further said the spurious medicines were sold as genuine branded products, posing a serious risk to public health.
Acting on inputs, the Crime Branch team first conducted a raid at Teliwara in Sadar Bazar, one of the country's largest wholesale pharmaceutical and cosmetic markets.
"During the raid, a large quantity of counterfeit Schedule-H ointments was recovered. Subsequent technical analysis and follow-up intelligence led the team to a manufacturing unit operating from Meerpur Hindu village in the Loni area of Ghaziabad.
"A search of the premises resulted in the recovery of counterfeit medicines, huge quantities of raw chemicals, packing material, empty tubes bearing forged brand labels and machinery used for mixing, filling and sealing ointments," the DCP said.
He further said drug inspectors from the North and Central Zones of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, along with authorised representatives of the concerned pharmaceutical companies, conducted spot inspections and drew samples from the seized stock. They confirmed that the medicines were counterfeit and neither manufactured nor supplied by their companies.
The accused were also found to be operating without any valid licence to manufacture, store or sell pharmaceutical products, he added.
Police said that an FIR was registered at the Crime Branch police station on December 12 under various sections of the BNS and provisions of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
"The seized material included around 1,200 tubes of spurious Betnovate-C ointment, over 2,700 tubes of fake Clop-G, more than 3,700 tubes of spurious Skin-Shine ointment, nearly 22,000 empty fake Clop-G tubes, over 350 kilograms of semi-prepared ointment, besides chemicals and manufacturing equipment," the DCP said.
He said further investigation is underway to trace the entire supply chain, including wholesalers, distributors, delivery handlers and retailers involved in the illegal trade.
