The rain kept Kolkata’s air clean on Monday and warm weather on Tuesday despite frequent bursting of firecrackers across the city on both days.
The seven air quality monitoring stations in the city which record data continuously reported ‘good’ and ‘satisfactory’ air quality on Monday as well as till late on Tuesday.
The stations, run by the West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB), are located in Jadavpur, Ballygunge, Rabindra Sarobar, Bidhannagar, Victoria Memorial, Fort William and the Rabindra Bharati University campus on BT Road.
Usually, the air quality drops to ‘poor’, ‘very poor’ or even ‘severe’ during Diwali.
The weather on Diwali usually remains dry, unlike this year. In 2021, the monitoring stations in Bidhannagar, Rabindra Bharati University and Jadavpur recorded ‘poor’ air.
The air quality was ‘moderate’ in Ballygunge, Fort William, Victoria Memorial, Rabindra Sarobar and Ballygunge. Air of ‘moderate’ quality can cause breathing difficulties for people suffering from asthma and cardiac ailments, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.
On Monday, the entire city received drizzle since morning. An air quality specialist with the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) said rain washed away the particles emitted by firecrackers, one reason why the air was clean.
“That is the reason why the air quality is best during the monsoon, said the specialist.
Favourable meteorological conditions — wind on Monday and high temperatures on Tuesday — helped in keeping the air clean, said an expert with the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).
“Air pollution is a concern during winter months because owing to natural phenomena, the emitted toxic elements remain trapped closer to the ground. We breathe that air and the toxic elements go inside our lungs. Since winter is yet to set in in Kolkata and the rest of India, the meteorological conditions are still not favorable for the trapping of toxic elements closer to the ground,” said the air quality management specialist with the CSE.
“It is for this reason that Delhi has witnessed comparatively better air quality during Diwali this year,” said the expert.
The maximum temperature recorded in Kolkata on Tuesday was 30.2 degrees Celsius.
