The smog is extremely hazardous for those having a history of respiratory illness and heart patients are specially advised to take special care
The uncomfortable level of air pollution around Delhi is making living in the Capital a health hazard. Smog, which, in simple terms, is a kind of air pollution having a mixture of smog and fog in the air, is giving a tough time to the people. The smog is extremely hazardous for those having a history of respiratory illness and heart patients are specially advised to take special care.
"Fog happens during winters in any case. But because of these high pollution levels, this fog has turned dangerous. Since Wednesday, pollution in Delhi has again hit severe levels. The visibility is going down even though it's not that cold," said Anumita Roychowdhury, Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, and head of the Air Pollution and Clean Transportation Programme, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).
The minimum temperature on Thursday was 11.9 degrees Celsius, two notches above the season's average. The maximum temperature was 26 degrees Celsius.
The Air Quality Index (AQI), prepared by the US Embassy in Delhi, provides data from the Embassy and Consulate air quality monitors, along with additional data from the Centre and local monitoring stations in New Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai.
On Thursday, the AQI at Anand Vihar was recorded at 377 at 5 pm, which means air is the area is 'hazardous'. The agency's definition of hazardous specifies: "Serious aggravation of heart or lung disease and premature mortality in persons with cardiopulmonary disease and the elderly; serious risk of respiratory effects in general population. Any reading above 150 is considered unhealthy—with the range 351-500 classified as 'hazardous'. Experts maintain that as the AQI increases, large percentage of the population is likely to experience severe adverse health effects.
"This transition phase has large number of health hazards. People with a history of respiratory illness should always cover their face while moving out. The situation is expected to aggravate in the next few days with the drop in the mercury levels. A large number of cases of heart attacks are reported during this period," said Dr SP Byotra, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.
Experts confirm that particulate matter (PM) adversely affects human health more than any other known pollutant. PM consists of sulphate, ammonia, nitrates, black carbon, mineral dust, water and sodium chloride. In fact, in a report last year, the CSE had said that air pollution is responsible for around 10,000-30,000 deaths in the Capital annually.
Meanwhile, low visibility due to fog ensured that flights and trains in the Capital continued to be affected. The Palam weather office recorded visibility at zero metres at 8.30am on Thursday, while at the Safdarjung observatory, it was marginally better at 150 metres. Around 26 flights were delayed or diverted at the Delhi Airport while three were cancelled, according to the IGI website.
"Flight operations at the airport are 'intermittent' but not suspended," an airport official said. Also, 60 trains, including the Sealdah, Howrah, Jammu and Bhubaneswar Rajdhanis, were running behind schedule by about 2-4 hours due to the fog.
It was not just trains, the Capital's roads too were affected by fog. Three persons died and eight others injured when a bus rammed into an SUV in Kopganj area amid the dense fog. Prakash (20), Baijnath (30) and Krishna (23) were killed in the mishap, the police said. The injured were rushed to a hospital, where their condition was stated to be stable.
Fog affecting flights from Delhi on Thursday
Flights cancelled: 16
Flights delayed: 231
Flights diverted: 6
Measuring Pollution in the Capital
The Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) air quality index (24-hour average) was in the 'severe' category with a reading of 403, which may affect healthy people and seriously impact those with existing respiratory ailments.
Five out of the nine monitoring centres of CPCB — DTU, Punjabi Bagh, Anand Vihar, Mandir Marg, and Shadipur — recorded air quality as severe.
The Palam weather office recorded visibility at zero metre at 8.30 AM. At Safdarjung observatory, it was marginally better at 150 meters.
The 24-hour-average (rolling) of PM 2.5 and PM 10, ultrafine particulates, were 188 and 350 micrograms per cubic metre respectively, violating the prescribed standards of 60 and 100 respectively by multiple times. PM 2.5 levels are 3-5 times higher than prescribed standards.
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