News Analysis India

Tag: Air Pollution

  • Pollution panel bring directive out for keeping air clean for north Indian states

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  The Commission for Air Quality Management on Wednesday issued a detailed action plan for north Indian states to curb air pollution. The plan of action is largely divided on five aspects — controlling stubble burning, dust pollution, waste burning, vehicular pollution and industrial pollution.

    The commission, formed by the Centre as the apex body to figure out an overall plan, has sent the plan to Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. With regard to stubble burning, the CAQM has suggested vast use of Pusa-bio-decomposer technique.

    The ruling AAP government has in the past promoted this technique in the city with good results. Environmental experts have identified dust on roads and construction sites also as one of the major causes of air pollution.

    The CAQM has directed the road owning agencies and municipal bodies for abatement of dust from roads and open areas through a ‘Dust Control and Management Cell’.

    The panel has also issued directions for monitoring of construction and demolition activities through a dedicated web-portal and ‘video fencing’ of projects. To reduce vehicular pollution, the body has asked governments to push for E-vehicles and avoid traffic congestion at entry points into Delhi. 

    CAQM has advised deployment of enforcement teams and implementation of quick-complaint redressal system under the state-wise action plan focusing on avoiding waste burning at landfill sites in the region.

    With a view to minimise coal in industries, government of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan have been advised to prepare action plan for shifting of industries to cleaner fuels in the NCR districts, where gas infrastructure is already available.

  • Air pollution one of the biggest environmental threats to human health: WHO

    The World Health Organisation said its new air quality guidelines aim to save millions of lives from air pollution.

  • Air pollution shortens average Indian life expectancy by 5.9 years: Report

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The average Indian life expectancy is shortened by 5.9 years due to air pollution, compared to what it would be if the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines were met, a global study released on Wednesday said.

    Delhi and Uttar Pradesh are the worst-affected states, the report said. Residents of the national capital lose 9.7 years of their lives due to pollution while those in Uttar Pradesh lose 9.5 years, according to findings in the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) report, a tool developed by the Energy Policy Institute of the University of Chicago (EPIC).

    Alarmingly, India’s high levels of air pollution have expanded geographically over time. Compared to a couple of decades ago, particulate pollution is no longer a feature of the Indo-Gangetic plains alone. Pollution has increased so much in the states of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. For example, the average person in those states is now losing an additional 2.5 to 2.9 years of life expectancy, relative to early 2000.

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    According to new data from the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI), all of India’s 1.3 billion people live in areas where the annual average particulate pollution level exceeds the WHO guideline and particulate pollution has increased over time. Since 1998, average annual particulate pollution has increased 15%, cutting 0.9 years off the life of the average resident over those years.

    “Nearly 40% of India’s population is exposed to pollution levels not seen in any other country, with 510 million residents of northern India on track to lose 8.5 years of life expectancy on average, if pollution levels persist,” it added.

    The annual average PM2.5 concentration in the cities of Allahabad and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh is 12 times the WHO guideline. Residents of Lucknow stand to lose 11.1 years of life expectancy if these pollution levels persist.

    In 2019, India’s average particulate matter concentration was 70.3 µg/m³ -the highest in the world and 7 times the WHO’s guideline of 10 µg/m³.

    It further says that South Asia is home to the most polluted countries on Earth, with Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan accounting for nearly a quarter of the global population and consistently ranking among the top five most polluted countries in the world.

  • IIT Delhi researchers develop modified cotton fabric which adsorbs air pollutants

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi have developed a modified cotton fabric capable of adsorbing harmful air pollutants.

    ZIF-8@CM Cotton and ZIF-67@CM Cotton, as they are called, are Zeolite Imidazolate Framework (ZIF)-modified functionalised fabrics which adsorb high levels of organic air pollutants like benzene, aniline, and styrene from the ambient air.

    According to the research team, air pollution resulting from the rising levels of particulate matter, nitrous oxides, sulphur oxides, carbon oxides, and other toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a major concern.

    A long-term exposure to even a few parts per million of these chemicals takes a toll on health and can cause asthma, and eye and throat irritations etc.

    “In this study, we have shown the functionalisation of cotton fabric by ZIF MOFs (ZIF-8 and ZIF-67) using a rapid, facile, eco-friendly, and scalable approach.

    The ZIF functionalised textiles possess a huge potential for applications as protective garments and in controlling indoor air pollution.

    These fabrics may be used as upholstery for controlling gaseous pollutants that cannot be filtered out using a filter media.

    “In particular, these can be used within closed spaces such as homes, offices, theatres, aeroplanes and other transport vehicles,” said Ashwini Agrawal of the Textile and Fibre Engineering Department, IIT Delhi.

    The ZIF-8 functionalised fabric was found to adsorb a maximum of 19.89 mg/g of aniline, 24.88 mg/g of benzene, and 11.16 mg/g of styrene on the weight of the fabric.

    These fabrics could be easily regenerated by heating the fabrics at 120 degrees Celsius and reused without any decrease in their adsorption capacity for several cycles, the team said.

    Using a technique known as in-situ growth of ZIF-8 and ZIF-67 nanocrystals on the carboxymethylated cotton fabric using a rapid water-based textile finishing approach, the researchers at IIT Delhi have successfully developed a low-cost cotton fabric capable of adsorbing 400-600 per cent more VOCs than ordinary cotton fabrics.

    Further, these fabrics are robust and can withstand even the harsh conditions of washing.

    They can be used repeatedly and in designing functional filters and pollution controlling upholstery fabrics among others.

    IIT Delhi research scholar Hardeep Singh, who carried out detailed experiments to develop these fabrics, said the porous materials such as activated carbon, zeolites, and Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are capable of adsorbing VOCs from air.

    “The MOFs can be tweaked to create textiles that have antimicrobial, biomedical, particulate matter filtering, fuel filtering, chemical warfare protecting and UV radiation absorbing properties. The ZIFs specifically are more suitable under Indian conditions,” he said.

  • Smog towers ‘quick fix’, no scientific evidence they tackle pollution long-term: experts

    Smog towers are an enormous distraction from what should be the governments #39; focus: reducing emissions,” according to experts.

  • SC refuses to entertain Delhi govt’s plea seeking closure of power plants in Punjab, Haryana, UP

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea filed by the Delhi government against the Centre seeking closure of 10 power plants in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, contributing to air pollution of the national capital.

    A Bench Justices Navin Sinha and RS Reddy refused to entertain the public interest litigation (PIL) of the Delhi government and asked its counsel to withdraw the plea. The plea was then withdrawn by the Delhi government.

    The PIL filed by the Delhi government sought a direction to Centre to install Fuel Gas Desulphurisation (FGD) device in 10 thermal power plants in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh as in absence of the device, the power plants contribute majorly to pollute the air in the national capital.

    The plea also sought quashing of an order passed by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to these thermal power plants, extending the deadline for installation of FGD.

    Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves appearing for the Delhi government told the Bench that power plants contribute 80 per cent of sulphates, etc and control of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide has to be there. “These are the killer gases,” he added.

    Gonsalves stated that according to the IIT Kanpur report, Delhi’s pollution levels are high. He further said that it was stated by the CPCB in its report that the FGD be installed by 2019.

    To this, Justice Navin Sinha replied that now the deadline is the year 2022.

    Gonsalves contended that pollution is becoming worse and the deadline should be closer.

    “We understood your case. The state has come under a PIL against the Government of India,” the Bench observed.

    Gonsalves replied that the State government has approached the top court because it is affected by the power plants.

    The Bench told Gonsalves that the Delhi government’s case is that the Centre made a statement before the court and now they are deviating. It said the Delhi government can intervene in the same case where the Centre reportedly gave an undertaking that it will install FGDs.

    Thereafter, Gonsalves appearing for the Delhi government withdrew the PIL from the court. 

  • IIT Kanpur professor appointed honorary member of WHO body

    By PTI
    KANPUR: A professor at IIT-Kanpur has been appointed as an honorary member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Air Pollution and Health-Technical Advisory Group (GAPH-TAG), a communiqué issued by premier institute said.

    Mukesh Sharma, an air quality expert associated with the civil engineering department at IIT-Kanpur, has melded rigorous research with policy engagement, it said.

    “Members of the Technical Advisory Group are selected across the globe and appointed by the Director-General, WHO,” the communique issued on Friday said.

    WHO-TAG is an advisory body to the WHO providing technical guidance and inputs to support WHO’s efforts and work in the fields of air pollution and health issues, including how member countries can achieve the air pollution and health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3.9.1, 7.1.2 and 11.6.2).

    The SDGs or Global Goals were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity.

    Sharma has been associated with WHO, Geneva, International Council for Clean Transport, Clean Air Asia United National Environmental Program, Bangkok, and the World Bank, it said.

    He will be part of the WHO advisory group on interventions/policies for air pollution control in 194 member states, the communique added.

    IIT-Kanpur Director Abhay Karandikar congratulated Sharma.

  • Indians take 1.3 billion days off work yearly due to effects of air pollution: Study

    By Express News Service
    CHENNAI: Indian workers take 1.3 billion days off work annually because of the adverse effects of air pollution on their health, amounting to $6 billion in lost revenue, according to a study undertaken by Dalberg Advisors in partnership with Clean Air Fund and the Confederation of Indian Industry 

    Stating that air pollution costs Indian business about $95 billion (Rs 7 lakh crore) every fiscal year around 3% of India’s total GDP, the report highlights that air pollution has shown to have significant effects on workers’ cognitive and physical performance,  lowering their on-the-job productivity and thereby decreasing revenues by up to $24 billion.

    The report also states that India had 1.7 million premature deaths from air pollution in 2019 – which is 18 per cent of all deaths in the country. The figure is projected to increase by 2030, making the country a major contributor to the global economic costs of premature mortality. In economic terms, the lost working years cost the Indian economy $44 billion in 2019.

    Air pollution hasn’t spared the IT sector – the source of 9% of the country’s GDP – too. It lost USD 1.3 billion due to pollution-induced productivity loss per year. If the pollution levels continue to increase at currently projected rates, this figure could nearly double by 2030.

    Gaurav Gupta, Partner, Asia Director, Dalberg, said, “It has now become important for Indian business to include air emissions in their profit and loss statements. Clean air is a precondition for businesses to thrive and for India to realise its vision of becoming a USD 5 trillion economy by 2025. Achieving this goal would require industry leaders to take more ownership and become advocates in the  movement for cleaner air.”

  • Centre says there’s ‘no conclusive data to establish direct correlation of death, disease due to air pollution’

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: There is no conclusive data available to establish a direct correlation of death and disease exclusively due to air pollution, Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey told the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

    He was responding to a question on whether the government has undertaken any study about the ill effects caused by pollution on asthma patients, lungs of children and pregnant women in the country during the last three months of year 2019.

    In a written reply, Choubey said air pollution is one of the many factors affecting respiratory ailments and associated diseases.

    Health is impacted by a number of factors which includes food habits, occupational habits, socio-economic status, medical history, immunity, heredity of the individuals apart from the environment, he said.“There is no conclusive data available to establish a direct correlation of death/disease exclusively due to air pollution,” he said.The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) under the Ministry of Health along with Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) and Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) has conducted the study ‘India State-level Disease Burden Initiative’. The report, titled ‘India: Health of the Nation’s States- The India State-Level Disease Burden Initiative’ was published in 2017.

    “The study report provided the distribution of diseases and risk factors across all states of the country from 1990 to 2016.

    The five leading risk factors for Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) in 2016 includes child and maternal malnutrition, air pollution, dietary risks, high systolic blood pressure, and high fasting plasma glucose.

    “The study reported that the DALYs due to air pollution decreased by 23.6 per cent in India from 1990 to 2016,” he said

  • Coal-fired brick kilns cannot be allowed to operate in NCR during severe pollution: NGT

    The tribunal had earlier rejected a plea to allow brick kilns running on #39;Zig-Zag #39; technology in NCR saying their operation will have a disastrous effect on the air quality.