PUNE: Covid-19 patients who have recently recovered, senior citizens and people with hypertension, diabetes and heart ailments must stay indoors as much as possible during Diwali. Pune’s air quality, which is likely to plunge to “very poor”, will affect them badly.
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The pollution will take a toll even though firecracker emissions are expected to be 50% less than previous Diwalis.
The forecast from the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology’s System of Air Quality Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) for this Diwali has said the pollution will affect those with co-morbidities, children, elderly, those with respiratory issues and Covid-19 patients.
The state government has banned the use of crackers in some districts due to the pandemic, but the Pune Municipal Corporation has banned them only in open grounds, gardens, schools and tourist spots.
“With Diwali falling in mid-November this year, when winter temperatures have already set in, air pollution is already relatively high. Even with 50% less cracker activity in comparison to the 2016-18 Diwali period, air quality is predicted to deteriorate to the lower end of very poor by November 15, the day following Laxmi Puja, the main Diwali day when crackers are burst in abundance,” the IITM forecast said.
Due to the low temperatures, the height of the atmosphere’s mixing layers is likely to be low and winds are expected to be calm, leading to accumulation of pollutants closer to the ground. Hence, faster deterioration of air quality is expected, the forecast added.
Shashank Joshi, a member of Maharashtra’s Covid task force, told TOI that the vulnerable population must wear masks and maintain physical distancing if they venture out. “The virus may stay longer in polluted air, filled with suspended particulate matter. Particulate matter directly affects lung condition. It may also expose one to a more severe form of Covid-19 infection,” he said.
Joshi said those who have suffered from Covid-19 in the last 90 days should also stay indoors as lung conditions can worsen in poor, cold air.
Reinfection in such cases is also not ruled out, Joshi said. “People who have Covid-19 may also find the infection getting severe after exposure to polluted, emission-filled cold air,” he pointed out.
Subhash Salunke, advisor to the state on control measures, said, “Covid-19 patients or those predisposed to the virus must stay at home for at least four days during Diwali till cracker-related pollution has dispersed. I strongly recommend that those with comorbidities, irrespective of the age, must remain indoors during this period, away from the deadly combination of pollution and cold air. They must seek immediate medical help in case of fever and breathlessness.”
Salunke said a sudden, concentrated exposure to polluted air in case of those who have conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, can predispose them to Covid infection.
WHO experts have said that exposure to air pollution will increase the risk of diseases of the respiratory system, like Covid-19. It will increase the susceptibility, and the vulnerability. This double burden must be tackled by addressing it and the causes of bad air which could exacerbate those diseases and make the patients, the population, more vulnerable to the disease and to the severity of developing a more serious illness.