Page 8 - Air Pollution In India

Delhi's air quality 'very poor' on Monday as minimum temperature slips

Delhi weather forecast: On Monday IMD's website showed that the probability of rain in the national capital is 100 per cent

Air Pollution: Several states haven't utilised sanctioned funds, says NGT

This comes after NGT going through the reports filed by various states on the implementation of comprehensive mitigation measures for the prevention, control, and reduction of air pollution

NGT directs states to take concerted efforts to improve air quality index

The National Green Tribunal has directed states which witnessed a deterioration in the Air Quality Index to make "concerted efforts" to ensure an improvement in air quality. The tribunal had earlier issued notices to the chief secretaries of several states after taking cognisance of the online air quality bulletins of the Central Pollution Control Board. It had also directed the chief secretaries of the states where the AQI had dipped or continued to be severe, very poor and poor, to "take all possible immediate remedial measures". Referring to the AQI chart of various cities, including those in Punjab, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Bihar, from November 10 to 21, an NGT bench said, "It did not depict any satisfactory efforts by the authorities concerned." The bench of NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava judicial member Justice Sudhir Agarwal and expert member A Senthil Vel underscored that

Who is in charge of my 'air'?

Controlling air pollution calls for negotiations that cover airsheds, as air is mobile and beyond artificial legal jurisdictions

TMS Ep568: Rlys' Chhath woes, news broadcast on mobile, Tata

Why can't Indian Railways manage the annual Chhath rush? What will be the impact of direct-to-mobile broadcasting? Is Tata Tech IPO worth your money? What is GRAP? Find answers here

Stage-IV measures under Grap revoked as pollution reduces in Delhi

The Centre on Saturday ordered the revocation of a ban on construction work related to linear public projects in Delhi-NCR and the entry of polluting trucks and commercial four-wheelers into the national capital following an improvement air quality in the region due to favourable wind speed and direction. These measures constitute the final stage, Stage IV, of the Centre's air pollution control plan, which is activated at least three days before the Air Quality Index (AQI) surpasses the 450-mark in the capital. The Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM), a statutory body responsible for formulating strategies to combat pollution in the region, asked Delhi and NCR states to revoke all emergency measures, which allow only CNG, electric and BS VI-compliant vehicles from other states to enter Delhi, with exemptions granted to those involved in essential services. All medium and heavy goods vehicles not engaged in essential services we

AQI improves to 'very poor', but no respite from toxic air in Delhi

The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) in the Capital dropped from 461 at 7 am on Friday to 398 this morning, settling in the 'very poor' category

Top 10 most polluted cities across India with worst AQI; details inside

The air quality across Indian cities has been deteriorating for the last fourteen days and has worsened following the celebration of Diwali which saw the widespread bursting of firecrackers

Cases of respiratory issues, eye irritation rise in Delhi hospitals

Though Delhi recorded a brief improvement in air quality last week, city hospitals continue to report a rise in the number of patients visiting hospitals for respiratory issues, prolonged coughing, throat infections and eye irritation. The national capital experienced 'very poor' to 'severe' air quality for two weeks starting October 28 with a suffocating haze lingering over the city during the period. Intermittent rain led to a rapid improvement in Delhi's air quality on Friday by over 150 points. However, the respite was short-lived as people flouted the ban on firecrackers on Diwali on Sunday, leading to a jump in pollution levels. Doctors at many government-run and private hospitals said the rise in cases of prolonged coughing, throat infection, eye irritation, nasal discharge and asthma exacerbation continues. Out-patient department (OPD) footfalls may have gone down "very slightly" as people generally avoid going to hospitals during the festive season. "We barely witnessed tw

Air pollution in Delhi nears 'severe' category again, relief unlikely soon

Air pollution in Delhi neared the "severe" category again amid unfavourable meteorological conditions on Tuesday and a relief is unlikely soon. The capital's 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI), recorded at 4 pm everyday, stood at 397, worsening from 358 on Monday and 218 on Sunday. Air pollution levels hit the severe category (AQI above 400) at many places within the city, including ITO (427), RK Puram (422), Punjabi Bagh (423), Nehru Nagar (450), Anand Vihar (439) and Nehru Nagar (450). Neighbouring Ghaziabad (356), Gurugram (386), Greater Noida (348), Noida (364) and Faridabad (384) also recorded very poor air quality. Squandering the relief due to rain, Delhi recorded a jump in pollution levels and a smoky haze returned on Monday after people flouted the ban on firecrackers on Diwali night. According to IQAir, a Swiss company that specialises in air quality monitoring, Delhi was the most polluted city in the world on Tuesday, followed by Dhaka Lahore and Mumbai. Delhi rec

Delhi pollution: NDMC doubles parking fee to discourage use of pvt vehicles

Amid high pollution levels in the national capital, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has doubled the charges for parking sites managed by it to discourage people from using private vehicles. There are a total of 91 parking sites in the NDMC area. While 41 of these are managed by the NDMC, the maintenance of others has been outsourced to other agencies. Parking sites between Rajpath and AIIMS, including those at Sarojini Nagar market, Khan Market, Lodhi Road, INA, AIIMS and Safdarjung, fall in the NDMC area. These sites witness heavy traffic. "Keeping in view the climatic conditions, the parking fees (off road/on road) has been enhanced to twice the existing (amount) to discourage private transport for the parking managed by NDMC through its own staff till 31st January 2024," an official notification stated. The NDMC presently charges Rs 20 per hour and a maximum of Rs 100 per day for four-wheelers parked at surface parking sites and Rs 10 per hour and a maximum of Rs 50 per d

Pollution levels rise in Delhi-NCR following Diwali, Anand Vihar AQI at 969

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research, the air quality in Delhi, as of 6 am, stood "poor" with AQI at 286, a rise from Sunday's 4 pm average reading of 218

Combating air pollution with artificial rain: Cloud seeding explained

The Delhi govt has announced it would initiate cloud seeding to tackle air pollution in the national capital

Smog towers no solution; Centre not in favour of more giant air purifiers

Punjab told to immediately announce incentive scheme on lines of Haryana to encourage farmers to shift from paddy, manage stubble

Delhi govt announces early winter break for schools amid severe AQI

The AQI level is still poor in Delhi NCR, the Delhi education minister announced early winter break and instructed students and teachers to stay at home

Air pollution: BMC takes action against gold and silver smelting units

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has demolished four chimneys of gold and silver smelting units in Kalbadevi and Zaveri Bazar area in South Mumbai amid worsening air pollution in the city, officials said on Wednesday. According to BMC officials, their C-ward took action against the units as they were compounding the air pollution in the metropolis. Mumbai's average air quality index (AQI) stood at around 150, or "moderate", on Wednesday, according to official data. As part of the business of making ornaments and allied activities, gold and silver are melted in smelting units, which are mostly small-scale factories. While the precious metals are melted in a furnace, gaseous byproducts are released into the air through chimneys, civic officials said. However, when such fumes are released without scientific treatment, they pose a threat to human health, they said. As these hazardous gases add to the city's pollution, BMC has initiated a drive against those violating the air ...

Maha air pollution crisis: CM Shinde calls for united efforts to curb issue

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said his government is making all efforts to curb rising pollution in Maharashtra and appealed for united efforts to make it happen. Speaking at a function after administering the pledge of 'pollution-free Diwali' to schoolchildren at Mantralaya, the state secretariat, Shinde said rising pollution levels have become a cause for global concern. The state government has focused on planting trees. Environment awareness campaigns are being conducted through Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and subsidies are being given for bamboo plantation, he said. Shinde said if children can make up their minds to celebrate a pollution-free Diwali, their parents will follow the same path. The CM's appeal comes at a time when Mumbai is witnessing rising air pollution levels. To control air pollution in Mumbai, the civic body has served notices to more than 100 contractors and real estate firms engaged in executing private and government projects, asking them to adhere

Air pollution: Physical classes up to 9 suspended in Noida till Nov 10

Physical classes up to class 9 will remain suspended in schools across Noida and Greater Noida till November 10 due to the poor air quality, the district administration ordered on Tuesday. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has implemented Graded Responses Action Plan Stage-IV with the air quality index (AQI) in Delhi-NCR breaching the severe category with 400+ AQI, District Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma said. "In view of the above order, all schools of the district Gautam Buddh Nagar are directed to follow the implementation of the GRAP stage-IV order by discontinuing physical classes from pre-school to class 9 up to November 10 and conduct lessons in an online mode," Verma said in the order.

Images show Indo-Gangetic Plains enveloped in smoky haze due to poor AQ

An air quality crisis gripped the Indo-Gangetic plains from Amritsar in Punjab to Purnia in West Bengal on Monday, causing inconvenience to approximately 40 per cent of the country's population residing in the region. Satellite images showed a layer of smoky haze blanketing the entire IGP region. Sri Ganganagar (AQI -- 310), Churu (308), Bharatpur (319), Bhiwadi (433), Dholpur (357), and Hanumangarh in Rajasthan; Faridabad (412), Fatehabad (422), Jind (381), Hisar (377), Bhiwani (335), Sonipat (417), and Gurugram (373) in Haryana recorded hazardous air quality on Monday. The air quality in Punjab, where a large number of farmers burn stubble in a bid to quickly prepare their fields for the next crop, was equally poor. Amritsar (316), Bhatinda (288), Jalandhar (222), Khanna (225), Ludhiana (282), and Mandi Gobindgarh (256) in the state recorded poor to very poor air quality. Ghaziabad (391), Greater Noida (420), Meerut (354), Bulandshahr (243), Hapur (332), Lucknow (251), Muzaffarna

Several resident welfare associations criticise odd-even scheme in Delhi

Several resident welfare associations in Delhi on Monday criticised the state government's decision to re-introduce the odd-even rule, while many others called for a complete lockdown to combat the rising air pollution. A network of 2500 RWAs, URJA, called the move a "political gimmick" and said that it does not have a bearing on improving the pollution. "The odd-even scheme is a political gimmick by the state government which has failed in introducing actionable solutions to this serious issue of pollution in Delhi. We are not happy with this decision," Atul Goel, president, United Residents Joint Action (URJA), said. Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Monday announced that the odd-even car rationing scheme will be enforced in the city post Diwali from November 13 to 20 to control air pollution. A decision on extension of the odd-even scheme will be taken after November 20. The RWA in north Delhi expressed displeasure over the initiatives taken by the Delhi government to dea