Delhi exceeds the new pollution norms consistently and if the new standards are to be applied, Chandni Chowk and Sarojini Nagar now fall in the ‘critically polluted’ zone, with one-and-a-half times the prescribed standards, says pollution data for November and the past year accessed by Newsline.
The prescribed standards have been tightened as pollution levels have shown an upward trend nationwide.
As per the new norms, the annual average for nitrogen dioxide is supposed to be 80 milligrams per metre cube (mg/m3) and the Particulate Matter standard (PM) is 60 mg/m3 annually. But as per air-monitoring data by the Central Pollution Control Board, annual average of the PM level in Sarojini Nagar is 180 mg/m3. At Town Hall, the figure was 278 mg/m3.
Nitrogen oxide levels at the South Delhi colony was measured at 69 mg/m3, while at Town Hall it was 77 mg/m3, says the data.
According to the pollution control board’s data, carbon monoxide, a pollutant that affects the oxygen carrying capacity of blood, is also at an alarming high in the city. While the hourly average for carbon monoxide is 4,000 mg/m3, it crossed 37,000 mg/m3 in Delhi on November 23.
At ITO, on November 22, it was measured at 357 mg/m3 — four times the prescribed limit.
Anumita Roychoudhary, from the Centre for Science and Environment, said: “Pollution levels are usually worse in winter as there is fog formation and the mixing heights of pollutants comes down. There is also ‘winter inversion,’ which means the pollution does not go high due to the cold. This is likely to get worse this winter. It is also a cause for serious concern that even summer pollutants (like Ozone, a pollutant being monitored for the first time) are high in Delhi.”
Pollution control experts said there is little that can be done till better fuel-efficiency norms come in. “The fact that Delhi’s air pollution crosses the standards is a concern. Nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide come from vehicular pollution and particulate matter (PM) levels have increased due to construction work in the run-up to the Commonwealth Games,” said A K Ambasht, member-secretary, Delhi Pollution Control Committee.
Ambasht said construction sites are supposed to be sprayed with water to keep dust level down. “We will conduct more stringent checks to contain the situation. However, vehicular emissions can only be curbed when new fuel norms — Bharat IV norms — come to Delhi next April,” Ambasht said.
