India Pollution watch: Delhi AQI sees a breather due to light showers
Air pollution levels in Delhi dipped on Thursday following light showers across the national capital. The concentration of pollutants PM10 and PM2.5 reduced considerably as compared to previous weeks.
Key Highlights
- PM 10 concentration in Delhi on July 18: 70
- PM 2.5 concentration in Delhi on July 18: 38
New Delhi: Rains lashed out at parts of the national capital on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, bringing down the temperature and reducing the levels of air pollution. Officials with the Indian Meteorological Department said that monsoon in northwest India will only weaken in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, floods have ravaged large parts of Bihar, Assam, Tripura and Manipur among others.
As compared to an AQI of 100 and 38 with regards to PM10 and PM2.5 respectively, Delhi witnessed reduced levels of pollution on Thursday with PM10 being recorded at an AQI of 70 and PM2.5 at an AQI of 38. The current categorisation of air pollution in the capital city falls in 'satisfactory' category.
Known as India's economic capital, Mumbai also recorded a decrease in the concentration of Particulate Matter 2.5 and 10 which constitute a lion's share of pollutants making their presence felt in the Maximum City's envious skyline. On Thursday, PM10 was pegged at an AQI of 53 and PM2.5 at an AQI of 19 in Mumbai. While the former landed in the 'satisfactory' category, the latter made it to 'good'. At this moment, students with the Centre for Excellence for Research on Clean Air (CERCA) at IIT-Delhi picked out 10 districts in Punjab and Haryana which have been identified as the main causes of air pollution in northern India.
Other places in India such as Bhiwadi, Yamuna Nagar and Sirsa in Haryana, Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, Howrah in West Bengal, Chennai in Tamil Nadu, Pune in Maharashtra recorded AQIs ranging from 154 to 194 which fall in the 'unhealthy' category. According to experts, members of sensitive groups start experiencing breathing problems with the concentration of pollutants being this high. Others may also feel respiratory issues. However, the high AQI is already reason enough to figure out a solution to this problem which is likely to intensify if air pollution is not curbed by the centre and the states.
While rains managed to bring down pollution levels in the national capital this week, a recent report has claimed that Central Delhi has received only 1 mm of rain, which makes it the driest region in the national capital. These figures indicate that out of all places in India's first city, Central Delhi is in severe need of measures to lower air pollution levels.
Meanwhile, air pollution levels in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore, Kochi in Kerala, Narnaul in Haryana, Durgapur in West Bengal and Bathinda in Punjab remained steadily low with AQIs ranging between 10 and 50. Pollution levels in this range are considered 'good' and pose little or no harm to human beings.