NOIDA/GHAZIABAD: The Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) has installed real time ambient air quality monitoring systems at Noida and Ghaziabad. In Noida, the machine has been set up at the Amity University premises at Sector 126.
In Ghaziabad, it has been set up at Vasundhara. UPPCB will set up similar systems at four more locations, including Greater Noida over next six months.
The machines at Noida and Ghaziabad are presently being operated on a trial basis and may finally start displaying accurate results after a 10 days.
This is the first time the cities would have round-the-clock automated pollution control monitoring which would display measures of all parameters of air pollution and weather condition determinants. The PM2.5 levels of the city's air too would now be available for first time at any given time.
"A private firm has been handed over operation and maintenance of the system for a period of five years. At present, wiring work of the display board is in the final stage. The board will display various parameters as soon as the wiring work is completed," said senior UPPCB official Dr Sapna Srivastava, in Ghaziabad told TOI.
The systems have been installed by UPPCB with 50% funding support by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Parameters of pollution that will be displayed on the board include PM 10, PM 2.5, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ammonia and benzene-toulene-xylene.
Meteorological data including temperature, wind speed, wind direction and humidity levels will also be displayed in a real-time basis on the board.
Officials of the UPPCB said that 24-hour average of pollution and weather data is already being received by them manually after the installation of the system.
"Each of these gadgets are being imported at Rs1 Cr. We will install the same at Bulandshahar, Greater Noida, Baghpat and Muzaffarnagar," BB Awasthi, regional officer, UPPCB, Gautam Budh Nagar, said.
