The Ministry of Earth Sciences on Tuesday said that no quick recovery from the severe air pollution is in sight unless the wind speed improves and moisture content declines in the National Capital Region.
The national capital has been recording severe category air quality for the last six days. Delhi's air quality index stood at 488 micrograms per cubic meter at noon, almost touching the hazardous category.
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According to the Ministry of Earth Science's System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research, "There are 3 major factors which are responsible for the 'terrible' air — due to entry of high moisture content, extremely calm local surface winds and favorable transport-level wind direction."
Due to the entry of high moisture content, humidity touched a new high and the air holding capacity increased under cool conditions, triggering rapid secondary fine particulate formation, a scientific process when a gas-to-particle conversion happens and in-situ chemical production takes place on available surfaces and multiplies PM2.5.
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On the other hand, calm local surface winds are arresting all old and new accumulated pollutants and PM2.5 aging was the only loss process left. According to the ministry, transport-level winds have now reversed and may reduce stubble intrusion.
Environmental activist Vimlendu Jha listed a seven-point suggestion to the government to address air pollution. Flickr
"But due to the first two factors, no quick recovery is forecast unless moisture content decline with radiative heating. Tomorrow AQI is likely to improve to the lower end of severe to higher end of very poor owing to a forecasted change in transport level wind direction and marginally better ventilation condition," SAFAR said.
Want to read more in Hindi? Checkout: चुनाव हारने के बाद ट्रम्प का पहला बड़ा कदम
The synergized stubble fire counts over Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and neighboring areas have marginally reduced since last reported but still significantly high and stood at 2,247 on Monday. Stubble burning share in PM2.5 in Delhi's air is estimated at 22 percent for Tuesday.
Arvind Kumar, Chest Surgeon at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said that there is no individual who breathes clean air or can escape the menace of air pollution. "Air does not know any boundaries. The real solution lies in preventing air pollution."
Environmental activist Vimlendu Jha listed a seven-point suggestion to the government to address air pollution.
He requested them to invest in public transport, regulate construction and demolition activities in Delhi-NCR, follow solid waste management rule, shutdown thermal plants in the region, change crop growing pattern, ban mass-scale culling of trees and increase the budget on combating pollution. (IANS)