This Diwali, air was worst in 3 yrs
NEWDELHI:The Capital witnessed the worst Diwali in three years in terms of air quality as a deadly cocktail of harmful pollutants and gases engulfed the city in thick smog.
Monitoring agencies — Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Central Pollution Control Board, Pune-based SAFAR and Centre for Science and Environment — were unanimous about the foulness of the air.
The most polluted corner on Diwali night was Anand Vihar with 888µg/m³ of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 at 1 am. PM10 was 1,684 µg/m³ at 2 am, according to DPCC.
PM 10 fluctuated between 448 µg/m3 and 939 µg/m3 on Sunday. On Diwali in 2015, it was between
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296 µg/m3 and 778 µg/m3. In 2014, it ranged from 421 µg/m3 to 790 µg/m3, according to DPCC.
On Monday, the city woke up to the season’s worst air quality as smoke from Diwali fireworks, coupled with moisture and nearly stagnant winds.
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Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), an agency under the earth sciences ministry, blamed it on low wind movement and falling boundary layer that traps pollutants close to the surface. The most critically polluted period was between 11pm October 30 and 10am Monday.
On Monday morning, the 24-hour rolling average of PM10 and PM2.5 were 700 and 450 respectively, according to SAFAR data. “The AQI overall across the city is 500+ and will remain similar even on Tuesday. Low wind speed and temperature are the reasons behind this,” SAFAR project director, Gufran Beig said.
SAFAR said the Delhi University area was the most polluted while Ayanagar was the least polluted. On the other hand, DPCC showed Anand Vihar as the most polluted in terms of both PM 2.5 and PM 10.
The Centre for Science and Environment report said this year Diwali pollution was not only worse but also more toxic as maximum levels of several gases and particles went up from last year.