Diwali in Delhi begins with a “dangerous” air quality seal. The AQI of entire NCRs has dropped back into the “dangerous” category, with Noida at the top of the table with 526, followed by Delhi’s Pusa Road with 505. So far, no fireworks
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The air quality had already reached the mark “very bad” in the morning. Authorities assume it will turn for the worse regardless of the cracker bursting.
At 8 a.m., Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) was 341, up from 314 measured on Wednesday at 4 p.m. The 24-hour average AQI was 303 on Tuesday and 281 on Monday.
An AQI between zero and 50 is considered “good”, 51 and 100 as “satisfactory”, 101 and 200 as “medium”, 201 and 300 as “bad”, 301 and 400 as “very bad” and 401 and 500 as ” heavy”.
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While SAFAR said air quality could become “severe” on Nov 5th and 6th if fireworks are burned, an India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said that model predictions do not suggest the AQI “even with higher emissions “Achieved the” difficult “category. .
The Department of Earth Sciences’ air quality prediction agency said Wednesday that 3,271 farm fires accounted for 8 percent of Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution.
It should rise to 20 percent on Thursday (Diwali) and 35 to 40 percent on Friday and Saturday, with the wind direction changing to northwest, it said.
Northwest winds carry smoke from farm fires in Punjab and Haryana towards the state capital.
Last year, the share of stubble incineration in Delhi’s pollution peaked on November 5, at 42 percent. In 2019, crop residue incineration accounted for 44 percent of Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution on November 1.
Delhi’s Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday urged the center to issue advice to Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to completely stop stubble stopping during Diwali so people can breathe easy after the festival.
The contribution of stubble incineration to PM2.5 concentration in Delhi was 32 percent on Diwali day last year, compared to 19 percent in 2019.
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The contribution of farm fires to air pollution in Delhi this season has so far remained small due to the record-breaking rainfall in October and the “unfavorable” wind direction for the smoke transport from stubble burns.
SAFAR said “very calm” local wind conditions in Delhi with poor ventilation are expected for the next three days, which will be unfavorable for the spread of pollutants.
Under a zero firecrackers emissions scenario, the PM 2.5 concentration in Delhi from November 4th to 6th is likely to be at the upper end of the “very bad” category.
“However, even if we factor in 50 percent of the 2019 fireworks load, the AQI is expected to drop into the ‘severe’ category during that period,” SAFAR said.
On September 28, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee ordered a complete ban on the sale and bursting of fireworks in the state capital until January 1, 2022.
According to the government, more than 13,000 kg of illegal fireworks were confiscated and 33 people were arrested as part of the anti-cracker campaign.
(With entries from PTI)
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