It is that time of the year when the entire National Capital Region is smothered by pollution, the air quality drops and pulmonary discomfort rises. However, this year, an early warning system that can forecast air pollution three days before it hits the area, has been installed.
The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences has developed an early warning system to detect the air quality called MoES. This system can also predict the impact of an event such as a dust storm.
Also Read: http://newsmobile.in/articles/2018/08/08/more-than-900-people-have-died-in-ncr-due-to-air-pollution/
The first MoES forecast was made on Monday for three days – October 16, October 17 and October 18. On October 17, the air quality will remain in the ‘poor’ category, and on October 18, a light rain shower is expected in and around the capital that could marginally improve the quality of air, it predicted.
Besides, air pollution quality, the system can also predict the factors causing it such as PM 2.5, PM10, NOx, O3, SO2 and CO. However, at the current stage, this system is not accessible to the general public.
Meanwhile, the air quality in New Delhi and its surrounding areas continued to remain poor on Tuesday, according to the data released by the National Air Quality Index (AQI). The condition is likely to remain the same and may even worsen in the next 24 to 48 hours.
The latest data, on Tuesday, shows major pollutants at PM 2.5 and PM 10 at 214 and 255 in the national capital’s Lodhi Road area, which is considered to be poor. The carbon monoxide level, on the other hand, was moderate as per the data.
Anand Vihar (average AQI of 592), NSIT Dwarka (221), and Jahangirpuri (251) are the other areas in the national capital that are experiencing high deterioration in air quality.
The AQI between the range of 51 to 100 is considered as satisfactory, 101-200 is moderate, 201-300 comes under the poor category, whereas 401-500 range is severe.
Compared to Monday’s AQI level which was PM 2.5 and PM 10 at 168 and 224 (hazardous), the air quality did not show any significant improvement. Continual exposure to such poor quality air can increase the risk of respiratory illness among others.
Other major cities in the North, too, are not spared either. In cities like Lucknow (AQI of 182), Agra (187), and Noida (297), the air quality continued to hover around the category of unhealthy and poor.
(With ANI inputs)