Delhi-NCR's Firecracker Obsession Keeps Rain Relief Short-lived; Air Poison Again, PM2.5 At Alarming Level

Delhi-NCR residents went all out with firecrackers on Diwali despite ban, taking the air pollution levels to an alarming high a day after the city and its adjoining areas got short-lived relief from the toxic haze due to rain god’s mercy.

Thanks to firecrackers, the Air Quality Index (AQI), which had improved over the weekend in most parts of Delhi-NCR due to a sudden spell of rain, went back to severe-hazardous levels as per several realtime air monitoring platforms. Follow Delhi-NCR Air Pollution News LIVE Updates Here

Sale, purchase and use of firecrackers, all of which has been banned by the Supreme Court, took place in many parts of Delhi and NCR unchecked this festive season.

Air quality monitoring portal aqicn.org, which provides data by India Meteorological Department (imd.gov.in) and Central Pollution Control Board (cpcb.nic.in), showed Anand Vihar’s AQI at 849, Pusa Road’s at 970, Patparganj’s at 700 and over 500 at many other parts of Delhi-NCR.

However, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), while the average AQI remained poor (289) in Anand Vihar at 5am, PM2.5 levels touched 500-mark. Similarly, RK Puram saw AQI of 281 at 5am, with PM2.5 being the most prominent pollutant touching 500-mark.

Air Quality Index (AQI) readings differ across portals as the numbers are based on EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) monitoring but may not be identical to the EPA’s AQI, however, should be in the same ballpark. As mention in a Vox.com report, AQIs reported around the world may also be pulling figures from a mix of computer modeling and satellite data.

‘Silent Killer’ PM 2.5 Sees Record Spike in 24 Hours

According to Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) data, Delhi’s hourly PM 2.5 (Particulate Matter), said to be the most damaging of all particles present in the air, concentration was recorded as high as 1,856 micrograms per cubic metre at east Delhi’s Patparganj. This is around 31 times the national 24-hour PM 2.5 standard of 60 micrograms per cubic metre.

A report published in March 2021 The researchers focused on air pollution called PM2.5 – responsible for an estimated 4.2 million premature deaths every year globally. This includes over a million deaths in China, over half a million in India, almost 200,000 in Europe, and over 50,000 in the United States.

Rains lashed parts of Delhi and adjacent areas like Noida, Ghaziabad on Friday, bringing down the temperature and also improving the air quality which had deteriorated to levels that prompted Delhi government to announce the return of odd-even scheme post Diwali and even mull artificial rain through cloud seeding.

Delhi on Saturday got its cleanest Diwali eve air since 2015 due to consistent winds.

Delhi’s average AQI on the eve of Diwali stood at 220, in comparison to last year’s Diwali eve, where the AQI was at 259. All the regions of the city managed to stay out of the ‘very poor’ category of air quality, a Times of India report said.

The odd-even rule, which was supposed to kick in on November 13, was put on hold by Delhi government after rain improved air quality.

The Supreme Court last week had made it clear that the decision on introducing the odd-even car rationing scheme has to be taken by the city government and pulled it up for shifting the burden onto the court.

Addressing a press conference, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Friday said the government will review the air quality situation after Diwali and a call on the odd-even scheme may be taken if there’s a sharp increase in pollution levels.

The Delhi Fire Service, meanwhile, received 100 calls of fire-related incidents on the evening of Diwali, officials said. These calls were recorded between 6 pm and 10.45 pm on Sunday, Delhi Fire Service (DFS) chief Atul Garg said.

Stray and pet dogs also had a difficult evening on Diwali, with sound of firecrackers not stopping till late in the night.