Diwali’s ban on crackers as strong as a twig, air quality index still high

Delhi is set to recede back from it’s Diwali festivities, looking forward to a day of rest. Unfortunately, this cannot guarantee our health or proper relaxation. Ever since the Supreme court banned the sale of crackers in the region, the populace was at unease. And we took care of it thanks to our over the top cunningness to find loopholes. We are always at our best when we are searching for ways to go around the law. But never great offering support to good causes. As the very example from Delhi’s crackers. A quiet and promising evening gave way to thick haze and noise as Delhi celebrated Diwali yesterday, dashing the hopes of cracker-free festivities, following a Supreme Court ban on the sale of firecrackers in the National Capital Region (NCR). 

The online indicators of the pollution monitoring stations in the city indicated a ‘very poor’ air quality as the volume of ultra fine particulates PM2.5 and PM10, which enter the respiratory system and manage to reach the bloodstream, sharply rose from around 7 pm. 

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee’s (DPCC) RK Puram monitoring station recorded PM2.5 and PM10 at 878 and 1,179 micrograms per cubic metre at around 11 pm. 

The pollutants had violated the corresponding 24-hour safe limits of 60 and 100 respectively by up to 10 times. 

It has forecast that the pollution levels will peak between 11 pm and 3 am. The situation was similar, if not worse, in the neighboring regions of Delhi such as Gurugram, Noida and Ghaziabad, where crackers were burst as usual, raising question marks on the efficacy of the administration in enforcing the apex court’s ban. 

However, the SAFAR has also predicted a relatively cleaner post-Diwali air due to favorable meteorological conditions. 

A ‘very poor’ air quality index (AQI) essentially means that people may suffer from respiratory illnesses on a prolonged exposure to such air.

If the air quality dips further, the AQI will turn ‘severe’, which may trouble even those with sound health conditions and seriously affect those with ailments. 

The Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution Prevention and Control Authority (EPCA) is empowered to enforce the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to combat air pollution in Delhi-NCR. 

Measures under the GRAP’s ‘very poor’ and ‘severe’ categories, which include a ban on diesel generator sets, came into effect on October 17 and they will remain in force till March 15.