‘AQI likely to get better after 48 hours’

PATNA: The state capital witnessed a sharp rise in the air pollution level with a surge in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Diwali on Wednesday.

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According to Sameer app of the Central Pollution Control Board (CBPCB), the AQI increased from 373 at 4pm on Wednesday to 420 at 8am on Thursday, which falls under the ‘severe’ category. It can badly affect healthy people and those with existing diseases.

The CPCB stated that Patna’s AQI was 334 on the eve of Diwali on Tuesday. The worsening of air quality began on Wednesday with large-scale bursting of firecrackers and other meteorological conditions.

Despite the Supreme Court’s restrictions on bursting of crackers from 8pm to 10pm this Diwali, the AQI was 373 at 4pm on Wednesday and 388 at 11pm, an hour after the end of the two-hour window.

Experts claimed that meteorological factors such as drop in temperature, increase in moisture and decline in wind speed also formed favourable conditions for trapping of pollutants in Patna’s air.

“The temperature dropped to 17 degrees C at 11pm on Wednesday, while the humidity was 84% that led to an increase in moisture and trapping of pollutants. The wind, which was blowing at a speed of 8km per hour on Tuesday became calm. These factors made the dispersal of pollutants more difficult,” said a duty officer at the Patna Meteorological Centre.

He added, “Meteorological factors played a secondary role in Patna’s air pollution on Diwali. The primary role was played by large-scale bursting of firecrackers.”

Bihar State Pollution Control Board’s senior scientist S N Jaiswal claimed, “As per our assessment, the concentration of pollutants will take at least 48 hours to disperse.”