Mumbai pips Gurugram on air quality index levels as pollution worsens in financial capital: With AQI of 193, Colaba joins Delhi-NCR 'unhealthy' air

-

While Delhi, neighbouring National Captial Region (NCR) and other North Indian states grapple with rising air pollution levels, the air quality levels in Mumbai, surrounding Thane and Navi Mumbai districts, have dropped to "unhealthy" levels on Sunday. Mumbaikars woke up to the city's skyline wrapped under a blanket of smog. The real-time overall air quality of the city at 10 am docked in at 181, higher than Gurugram's real-time AQI at 10 am of 162. The pollutant levels in Mumbai of PM 2.5 (particulate matter which can settle in the lungs and cause health ailments) was 114, which is considered very unhealthy.

According to Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) AQI bulletin for Saturday till 4 pm, Gurugram remained in a better position with an AQI of 78 which falls under 'satisfactory' category, while Mumbai docked in 190 which comes under 'moderate' category.

An AQI between 0-50 is considered "good", 51-100 "satisfactory", 101-200 "moderate", 201-300 "poor", 301-400 "very poor", and 401-500 "severe". Above 500 is "severe-plus or emergency" category.

By 10 am on Sunday morning, the AQI of suburban area in Bandra was 167, Borivali (East) 159, Vile Parle (West) 179, Powai 183. Meanwhile, the city fell in 'unhealthy' air quality category with Colaba recording an AQI of 193, Kurla 184, Sion 176, Worli 188, according to real-time air quality application 'Air Matters'.

Navi Mumbai experienced high levels of pollution with an overall AQI of 186 which falls under 'unhealthy' category. Thane docked an overall AQI of 107, which was relatively better than the rest of Mumbai.

"With the onset of winter, air quality has begun to deteriorate. As winter sets in, PM concentration in the air will rise as lower temperatures cause pollutants to get trapped closer to the earth’s surface, leading to an increase in the pollution levels," said SAFAR project director Gufran Beig told Fress Press Journal. System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research's (SAFAR) data on Mumbai's air quality is currently unavailable their official website is currently shut.

Interestingly, Mumbai this year has recorded its 'cleanest Diwali air' in five years. As per data by Visual Visual on AQI world ranking, Mumbai figured in the top 10 most polluted Indian cities alongside Delhi and Kolkata.

Delhi in comparison, on Sunday morning, plunged into 'poor' category, making it difficult for locals to move outdoors after a brief respite from the toxic air. According to the Centre-run Central Pollution Control Board, at 9:00 am, the AQI docked at 281, which falls in the 'poor' category in DTU, Delhi while in Mathura Road also the AQI was recorded at 213.

However, at the city's major junctions such as Ashok Vihar, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium and Mundka, the AQI was 291, 277 and 289 respectively. The National Capital is likely to witness strong surface winds during the day time today and the temperature would be oscillating between 9 degrees Celsius to 24°C, predicted India Meteorological Department (IMD).

SAFAR advised 'sensitive groups' to consider reducing prolonged or heavy exertion throughout the day. "Take it easy if symptoms such as coughing or shortness of breath occur," the organisation stated in its advisory.

With inputs from agencies



from Firstpost India Latest News https://ift.tt/2OEkNtI
FP Staff

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Both COVID-19 vaccine doses needed for good protection against B16172 variant

-
It’s been a concerning few weeks in the UK, with the B16172 variant first taking hold and then spreading to become dominant. This more infectious form of the virus, initially identified in India, is what we’re now going to have to live with – unless it is out-competed by another variant in the future. Worryingly, experts had predicted that B16172 might be able to escape some of the effects of vaccines, which if true would threaten to derail the UK’s plans to finish lifting restrictions from the end of June. However, Public Health England (PHE) has looked at the ability of various variants to evade immunity and says that the UK’s vaccines remain effective against the variants circulating, including B16172. On the surface, this looks like good news. But delve a bit deeper, and things get more complicated, says Paul Hunter, professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia. PHE’s research found a little drop-off in protection against B16172 among people who were fully vaccinated.
Read more

New coronavirus variant emerge in India: How should our COVID response change?

-
Image
After genome sequencing of over 10,000 COVID-19 cases in India, researchers have discovered a new variant with two new mutations which may be better at evading the immune system. In 15-20 percent of samples from the Indian state of Maharashtra (the state accounting for 62 percent of cases in the country) a new, double mutation in key areas of the virus has been detected. These are now known as the E484Q and L452R mutations. What makes the variant different? Both these mutations are concerning because they are located in a key portion of the virus – the spike protein – that it uses to penetrate human cells. Spike proteins attach via a “receptor binding domain”, meaning the virus can attach to receptors in our cells. These new mutations include changes to the spike protein that make it a “better fit” for human cells. This means the virus can gain entry more easily and multiply faster. Given what we have seen with other similar mutations , it might also make it harder for our immu
Read more

120 flights delayed, 30 trains running late; Delhi fog & cold wave continue to give shiver to travellers

-
Arrival and departure of 120 flights, both domestic and international, to Delhi airport were affected due to dense fog and cold wave conditions on Wednesday, according to Delhi Airport FIDS (Flight Information Display System). As per the Delhi Airport FIDS, a total of 53 flights, including 21 domestic arrivals, 16 domestic departures, 13 international departures and three international arrivals scheduled are cancelled and not operating due to fog and other operational reasons from and to Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in the national capital on 17 January. #WATCH | Delhi: Several flight operations delayed at IGI airport due to low visibility amid fog. pic.twitter.com/hG1DUKllEt — ANI (@ANI) January 17, 2024 Visuals from the Delhi airport showed passengers waiting outside, checking update of their scheduled flights. There were also some people waiting for flight of their families, friends and loved ones to arrive, which got delayed due to fog. #WATCH | Delhi | Pas
Read more