Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Wednesday claimed that air pollution in the city on Diwali night this year was less than last year. His statement came a day after monitoring centers reported that Delhi’s air pollution had reached its highest level in four years on Diwali, with the concentration of fine pollutant particles (PM 2.5) reaching 675. The chief minister said she would meet a Punjab minister on Thursday and apprise the state government of Delhi’s concerns regarding stubble burning.
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Stubble burning is a major cause of pollution in the national capital in winter. “The difference (between average air quality index (AQI)) before and after Diwali this year is less than last year, even though burning of firecrackers was allowed this time,” Gupta said at a press conference. He said his government was taking all necessary steps with “greater vigilance” to curb pollution.
Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa had said on Tuesday that before Diwali the AQI in Delhi was 341 and after Diwali it has increased by only 11 points to 356.Sirsa had blamed Punjab’s Aam Aadmi Party government for the toxic smog in the national capital and alleged that the state government “forced” farmers to burn record amounts of paddy straw on Diwali night.
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Delhi’s air quality further slipped into the ‘very poor’ category on Tuesday due to bursting of firecrackers beyond the limit set by the Supreme Court on Diwali night. As toxic smoke laden with pollutants and heavy metals rose, the city’s average hourly PM2.5 level reached 675 micrograms/m³ at midnight, the highest since Diwali night in 2021, when it was 728 micrograms.
However, increase in wind speed after 6 am and above normal temperatures, as well as negligible impact of stubble burning, prevented further increase in pollution during the day. Delhi’s 24-hour average AQI at 4 pm on Diwali stood at 345 in the ‘very poor’ category – the highest reading on a Diwali day since 2021, when it had reached 382. On Tuesday, it rose marginally to 351 – higher than last year’s post-Diwali reading of 339 (on November 1) but lower than the level recorded in 2023 (358).
News Source – PTI Information