The air pollution levels in India worsened in 2022. As per data released by the Central Pollution Control Board, Katihar in Bihar had the highest AQI (Air Quality Index) of 360 among 163 Indian cities on November 7.
The data shows that Delhi's AQI stood at 354, Noida's stood at 328 and Ghaziabad's stood at 304. Begusarai (Bihar), Ballabgarh, Faridabad, Kaithal and Gurugram in Haryana and Gwalior (MP) were also among the most polluted cities on Monday.
The data comes as a wake-up call for India. The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) reported 3,634 farm fires in Punjab on Wednesday, the highest this year so far.
In a bid to reduce vehicular emissions, Environment Minister Gopal Rai appealed to the Uttar Pradesh and Haryana chief ministers to take measures to divert trucks carrying non-essential goods on peripheral expressways to avoid traffic jams at the capital's borders.
According to Safar, a forecasting agency under the Ministry of Earth and Sciences, the share of stubble burning in Delhi's PM2.5 pollution dropped to 21 per cent on Saturday from 30 per cent on Friday due to unfavourable transport-level winds.
Transport-level winds blow in the lowest two layers of the atmosphere --troposphere and stratosphere -- and carry smoke from farm fires to the National Capital Region.
Air Quality Index or AQI measures the concentration of PM 2.5 levels -- fine particles of less than 2.5 microns that can enter the bloodstream and penetrate the lungs and heart - which are linked to chronic respiratory diseases.
Not only does the toxic air affect healthy lungs, but it is also found to cause premature deaths among those suffering from respiratory illnesses. According to Greenpeace, more than 1.2 million Indians died prematurely in 2017 due to air pollution.
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