If the city’s air pollution is often overwhelming for commuters, for most police personnel manning the signals and major junctions, it must be like living in a gas chamber.
Recognising this, the civic body has decided to construct 200 air-conditioned kiosks for traffic policemen, which could provide some relief to them.
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner N. Manjunath Prasad said the civic body will not be funding the kiosks and is instead looking at a public-private partnership model. “The BBMP will get revenue by renting out space on the kiosks for advertisements,” he said.
A study conducted by Mangaluru-based Anti Pollution Drive (APD) in 2017 had showed that among the 235 traffic policemen in Bengaluru, 31% had reduced lung function, while one-fifths had some form of respiratory system problems.
Digital display boards
Among the other plans to improve air quality, the civic body has set aside ₹20 crore in the hope of installing quality monitoring stations in all wards. “A digital display will also help create awareness among citizens about the quality of air. Data from these stations will help us draw up a a robust air quality management plan,” said Mr. Prasad.
Pollution levels drop after metro
KSPCB Chairperson Lakshman maintained that after the Namma Metro's Phase 1 became fully operational, the air quality in the areas near the Green and Purple lines had improved by 13%. Meanwhile, after examining over 30,000 vehicles, their 12 mobile emission check vans — of which six are in the city — have found that 13% of petrol vehicles and 25% of diesel vehicles were emitting pollutants beyond the permissible limits.
Meet on air quality
Over three days, mayors and leaders from 15 cities across the world will meet to deliberate on how to improve the air quality in their respective cities.
In continuation of the commitment made in December 2017 by London and Bengaluru, C40 Cities, in collaboration with BBMP and KSPCB, will be hosting the Global Air Quality Public Forum and a technical workshop from July 31 to August 2 at the ITC Gardenia Hotel in Bengaluru.
The aim is to bring together leaders of 15 cities to share their knowledge and experience in tackling air quality and thereby help BBMP and KSPCB in strengthening the existing air quality roadmap. Some of the cities that will be participating in the workshop are London, Berlin, Johannesburg, Salvador, Portland, Kyoto, Los Angeles and Warsaw, according to a press release.