Delhi's air quality plunges to severe' a day after Diwali, 1st time this year
New Delhi: Despite several attempts made to curb the menace of air pollution, a layer of haze enveloped the national capital a day after Diwali as the city’s air quality plummeted on Monday to the “severe” category for the first time this season, with a large number of revellers brazenly flouting the Supreme Court-enforced two-hour limit for bursting crackers.
However, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said Monday that the air pollution level in the city on Diwali night was the “lowest” in the past five years as there was relatively less bursting of firecrackers.
His remarks came even as the city’s air quality dropped to the season’s worst on the morning after Diwali, but government agencies said the situation was still better than previous years.
Addressing a press conference, the chief minister said on Monday that the government has received masks and would distribute these in a few days. “After 8.30 pm yesterday, I could hear some sound of crackers bursting. I was very happy that compared to the last few years, there was much less bursting of crackers. The pollution figures have revealed that pollution has been the lowest in the last five years on Diwali night,” he said.
The Delhi Pollution Control Committee on Monday said less fireworks, rigorous night patrolling and enforcement measures to curb instigators reduced the PM2.5 and PM10 levels by 30 per cent on Diwali night this year, in comparison to 2018.
The decline in emissions of dangerous PM10 and PM2.5 particles across Delhi ranged from 20 to 50 per cent, indicating that the air quality was better than in previous years, the DPCC said in a statement.
“Our aim is to eliminate pollution from Delhi. I am glad that the people of Delhi have attended and enjoyed the Diwali laser show organised at Connaught Place. People are turning up in huge numbers. Next year, we will organise laser shows at various locations in Delhi,” Mr Kejriwal said.
He also said the government was firm on implementing the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) and will take strict action against violators.
According to the ministry of earth sciences’ air quality monitor, Safar, levels of PM2.5 tiny particulate matter of diameter 2.5 or less than 2.5 microns that can enter deep into the lungs reached as high as 735 at Delhi University.
Delhi’s overall air quality index (AQI) stood at 463 at 11.30 am, according to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (Safar). The AQI at Pusa, Lodhi Road, Airport Terminal T3, Noida, Mathura Road, Aya Nagar, IIT Delhi, Dhirpur, and Chandni Chowk was 480, 436, 460, 668, 413, 477, 483, 553 and 466 respectively.
However, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, Delhi’s overall AQI stood at 348 at 11.30 am on Monday. It was 337 at 4 pm on Sunday. Safar said an increase in windspeed will help disperse pollutants and the pollution levels are expected to come down by the evening.
It had earlier predicted that Delhi’s overall AQI would enter the severe category between 1 am and 6 am on Monday, primarily due to firecracker emissions, unfavourable weather and a significant spike in stubble burning.
An AQI between 0-50 is considered “good”, 51-100 “satisfactory”, 101-200 “moderate”, 201-300 “poor”, 301-400 “very poor”, and 401-500 “severe”. Above 500 is the “severe-plus emergency” category.
The satellite towns of Ghaziabad (378), Greater Noida (364), Gurgaon (359) and Noida (375) recorded their AQI in the very poor category, according to CPCB data.
Ambala, Hisar and Kurulshetra in Haryana recorded their AQI at 370, 380, and 377 respectively. In Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar, Moradabad and Meerut, it was 414, 393 and 330 respectively.
The AQI in Punjab’s Patiala, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Khanna stood at 334, 314, 321 and 301 respectively.
On Sunday night, people reported violations of the Supreme Court-enforced two-hour window in Malviya Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, Kailash Hills, Burari, Jangpura, Shahdara, Laxmi Nagar, Mayur Vihar, Sarita Vihar, Hari Nagar, New Friends Colony, Hauz Khas, Gautam Nagar and Dwarka, among others places.
According to data released by the Delhi Police, it got 940 calls about various violations on Diwali night, and seized nearly 3,765 kg of firecrackers. A total of 371 cases were registered on Diwali night, of which 56 cases were for storing and selling illegal firecrackers. Forty-four people were arrested in the 56 cases.
Residents in Noida, Greater Noida, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Faridabad also reported extensive fireworks much beyond the timeframe. According to reports, stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana have doubled in the past 48 hours, adding to the woes of Delhiites.
