New Delhi, Nov. 4 -- High industrial emissions, declining wind speed and inadequate ventilation may be contributing to the persistent spike in pollution levels in Jahangirpuri, one of Delhi's pollution hotspots, which has recorded the highest AQI among the city's monitoring stations for the last few days.
The AQI at the Jahangirpuri monitoring station touched 452 at 2.05 pm on Wednesday, placing it in the 'severe' category. Its 24-hour average AQI stood at 462 on Tuesday, 436 on Monday, 378 on Sunday and 243 on October 31, according to the data.
Sunil Dahiya, founder and lead analyst at Envirocatalysts, attributed the high pollution levels to a combination of industrial emissions, unfavourable meteorological conditions and possible obstruction to the dispersion of pollutants around the monitoring station.
"Three major factors might be interacting and causing the high levels of pollution. There is high industrial activity in the area around Jahangirpuri. Industrial activity means combustion, which leads to high emissions of PM2.5," he said.
He noted that wind speed dropped over the last few days, leading to greater accumulation of pollutants amid already elevated pollution levels and a lack of ventilation.
Dahiya also pointed out that a tall building located on one side of the Jahangirpuri monitoring station could be obstructing the proper dispersion of pollutants.
The combination of local emission sources and unfavourable meteorological conditions could be contributing to the sustained high pollution levels in the area, he added.
Delhi's overall AQI stood at 378 (very poor) at 3.05 pm on Wednesday. The city's 24-hour average AQI was 350 on Wednesday, compared to 324 on Monday and 261 on Sunday.
According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) standards, an AQI of 0-50 is considered 'good', 51-100 'satisfactory', 101-200 'moderate', 201-300 'poor', 301-400 'very poor' and 401-500 'severe'.
Delhi is currently under Stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which is invoked when the city's air quality enters the very poor category.
The 12-point action plan includes intensified mechanical and vacuum-based road sweeping, water sprinkling, stricter dust control at construction sites and increased inspections to curb pollution from construction and demolition activities.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.