GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 2nd Nov. Many parts of Delhi on Thursday experienced severe air pollution, with a thick smoky haze covering the city for the third day in a row.
Scientists have warned that pollution levels in the Delhi-NCR region will spike in the next two weeks due to an increase in farm fires and unfavorable weather conditions. This is concerning because the air quality index in many areas has already exceeded 400.
Health professionals are concerned that this could lead to an increase in asthma and lung problems, especially among children and the elderly.
At 10 am, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 351. The 24-hour average AQI was 364 on Wednesday, 359 on Tuesday, 347 on Monday, 325 on Sunday, 304 on Saturday, and 261 on Friday.
Several areas within the city, such as Punjabi Bagh (416), Bawana (401), Mundka (420), and Anand Vihar (413), recorded severe air quality.
The concentration of PM2.5, which is fine particulate matter that can cause respiratory problems when inhaled, was six to seven times higher than the safe limit of 60 microgrammes per cubic meter in these areas.
Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced that the city government will ban construction work in areas with an AQI above 400 for five consecutive days.
The government has also launched the “Red Light On Gaadi Off” campaign to reduce vehicular pollution and plans to hire 1,000 private CNG buses to improve public transport and reduce pollution from vehicles.
The AQI in neighboring Ghaziabad was 230, Faridabad 324, Gurugram 230, Noida 295, and Greater Noida 344.
An AQI between zero and 50 is considered good, 51 and 100 satisfactory, 101 and 200 moderate, 201 and 300 poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 and 500 severe.
Unfavorable weather conditions, combined with emissions from firecrackers, paddy straw burning, and local sources of pollution, contribute to hazardous air quality in Delhi-NCR during winter.
An analysis by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) shows that pollution peaks from November 1 to November 15, coinciding with an increase in stubble burning incidents in Punjab and Haryana.
The Punjab government aims to reduce farm fires by 50% this winter season and eliminate stubble burning in six districts. Hoshiarpur, Malerkotla, Pathankot, Rupnagar, SAS Nagar (Mohali), and SBS Nagar.
According to the state’s action plan to curb paddy straw burning, around 31 lakh hectares of land in Punjab is used for paddy cultivation, generating approximately 16 million tonnes of paddy straw.
In Haryana, about 14.82 lakh hectares of land is used for paddy cultivation, generating over 7.3 million tonnes of paddy straw. The state aims to eliminate farm fires this year.
According to a numerical model-based system developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune, vehicular emissions (11% to 16%) and stubble burning (7% to 16%) are the two major contributors to the city’s air pollution.
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