DAVANGERE: The atmosphere is polluted in many parts of Davangere city such as Azad Nagar and Mandakki Bhatti owing to the presence of puffed rice factories and movement of heavy goods vehicles and presence of hundreds of godowns.

A recent report of the Pollution Control Board, Davangere, said that air in the city was badly polluted as it contained suspended particulate matter (SPM) and respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM) above the permissible limits. According to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, the annual average of SPM should not exceed 140 micro grams per 1000 litre of air in residential and rural areas, and 70 micro grams in sensitive areas such as hospitals and schools. The SPM in Davangere, particularly on the PB road stretch, was 286 during 2005-06 and 282.71 the previous year.

This has led to large number of people in Davangere suffering from respiratory problems.

It is difficult to walk in many areas without covering your nose and to ride two-wheelers without wearing glasses.

According to Shivakumar of Ashraya nursing home, a large number of people have been visiting the hospital for treatment of allergic conditions such as asthma.

The board suggested proper cleaning of all roads and avenues every day and watering of roads to reduce dust. It said that heavy goods vehicles should not be allowed to ply within the city limits, as they would cause considerable air pollution. Such vehicles should be restricted between 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. It also suggested measures to prevent burning of tyres and tubes in puffed rice factories. Planting of saplings would help in controlling air pollution, the board said.

The Department of Pollution has installed two ambient air quality monitoring equipment at two places at a height of 14 m. to constantly monitor air pollution. It has shown that SPM and RSPM were quite high in the city.