PATNA: Hours after Diwali celebrations, the air quality in Patna deteriorated to ‘poor’ category on Sunday, as people continued to burst firecrackers after 10pm on Saturday.
The maximum noise level was recorded near Planetarium and in Patliputra Industrial area from 10pm on Saturday to 6am on Sunday while it was the minimum around Boring Road, areas near Beltron Bhawan and Parivesh Bhawan during the same period, as per the information provided by the Bihar State Pollution Control Board (BSPCB).
The overall air quality index (AQI) of Patna plunged from 215 on Saturday to 275 at 4pm on Sunday. The air pollution level was 190 on Friday, 137 on Thursday and 129 on November 11, as per the CPCB. The prominent pollutant here was PM2.5 (particulate matter less than 2.5 micron), PM10 (particulate matter 10 microns) and O3.
BSPCB public relations officer Birendra Kumar said in a press release that the noise and air pollution level increased after 10pm on Saturday. “The PM10 was recorded at 424 to 522 micrograms per cubic metre while PM2.5 was registered between 503 and 356 micrograms per cubic metre at different stations in the city,” he said.
The BSPCB official claimed that the overall AQI of 217 was the average of AQI level of six air monitoring stations at BIT- Mesra, Patna (264), Eco Park (334), SK Memorial Hall (286), DRM office, Khagaul (108), Planetarium (372) and Patna City (288). A “poor” AQI essentially means that people may suffer from breathing discomfort on prolonged exposure to such air.
Board chairman Ashok Ghosh said air pollution level increases after Diwali and Chhath, as people burst crackers which contain several harmful chemicals. “In several areas, the pollution level was in ‘very poor’ category, including near Planetarium and Eco Park. The increase in pollution level was mainly due to bursting of crackers. Geographical formation, climatic condition and anthropogenic are the main reasons behind the poor air quality,” he said.
“The air quality in the city, however, was still better than previous year’s Diwali time. In 2019, the overall AQI level was in very poor category even ahead of Diwali,” he said.
“Vehicle emission from the outdated automobiles, dust particles in the air, open construction, burning of waste and fuel are some of the reasons behind the haze during the winter season. Most of the brick kiln owners have adopted new technology that causes less air pollution,” Ghosh said.
Pradhan Parth Sarthi, professor at Department of Environmental Science of Central University of South Bihar (CUSB), said the pollution level shot up during daytime due to calm winds leading to accumulation of pollutants. “Improvement in the air quality depends on climatic conditions, including cloud free sky, wind velocity and high outgoing long-wave radiation,” he said.