Air quality deteriorates in many parts in north and central India; In Delhi , AAP govt blames BJP after cracker ban fails

After the rampant cracker bursting on Diwali despite restrictions in place, air quality deteriorated in many parts of India, including the national capital where it was the poorest in five years post the festival with a rise in stubble burning in neighbouring states compounding the pollution woes.

Delhi's Environment Minister Gopal Rai blamed the BJP, alleging that the saffron party instigated people to defy the ban on firecrackers, as the city's air quality index (AQI) entered the 'severe' category on Diwali night and continued its upward trend to reach 462 at noon on Friday.

Hitting back, Delhi BJP spokesperson Naveen Kumar Jindal said that Diwali is a festival of Hindus and not of a political party and asked if the Hindus who are with Rai's Aam Aadmi Party are not allowed to celebrate their festival.

The 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) the day after Diwali was 435 last year, 368 in 2019; 390 in 2018; 403 in 2017 and 445 in 2016. As a thick layer of acrid smog enveloped the Delhi-NCR region throughout the day, blotting out the sun, the 24-hour AQI was the highest in the country in Noida at 475, while others - Faridabad (469), Greater Noida (464), Ghaziabad (470), Gurgaon (472) - also recorded 'severe' air pollution levels.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), several other cities and districts in the country recorded severe AQI -- Agra, Baghpat, Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh; Ballbhgarh, Bhiwani, Hisar, Jind, Panipat, Rohtak in Haryana and Bhiwadi in Rajasthan.

Among the districts and cities where the AQI was 'very poor' were -- Ambala in Haryana; Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota in Rajasthan, Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, Gorakhpur in UP, Jalandhar in Punjab and Chennai in Tamil Nadu.

The AQI was in the poor category in Kolkata and Howrah in West Bengal; Patiala in Punjab and Patna in Bihar along with other districts in various states.

The 24-hour average concentration of lung-damaging fine particles known as PM2.5 in Delhi-NCR shot up from 243 micrograms per cubic metre at 6 PM on Thursday (Diwali day) to 410 micrograms per cubic metre at 9 AM on Friday, around seven times the safe limit of 60 micrograms per cubic metre.

Experts said the air quality turned severe in Delhi-NCR owing to unfavourable meteorological conditions -- calm winds, low temperature and low mixing height -- and a poisonous cocktail of emissions from firecrackers, stubble burning and local sources. The Ministry of Earth Sciences' air quality forecast agency SAFAR, stated that stubble burning accounted for 36 percent of Delhi's PM2.5 on Friday, the highest so far this season.

''A large number of people did not burst firecrackers. I thank them all. But some people burst firecrackers on purpose. I categorically say the BJP instigated them to do it,'' Rai told reporters.

The minister said the number of farm fires has risen to 3,500 and its impact is visible in Delhi.

Ahead of the festive season, the Delhi government had announced a complete ban on firecrackers till January 1, 2022, and ran an aggressive campaign against their sale and use.

The Delhi Police arrested 281 people -- 138 for selling and supplying firecrackers and 143 for bursting them -- between September 29 and Diwali on Thursday, according to data provided by the force.

Concerned citizens and environment activists shared pictures and videos of fireworks on social media and called the ban on crackers a “joke”.

“I will shock you by saying that the only thing good about this morning is this event because the weather outside is not good at all,” Supreme Court judge Justice S Ravindra Bhat quipped at a book launch while referring to the spike in air pollution level in the national capital.

The air quality status in Chennai was very poor with a substantial increase in pollutants in the metropolis when compared to the previous year, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board said.

The AQI observed from 6 AM on November 4 to 6.00 AM the following day, the ''average value of AQI in Chennai city ranges between 342 to 385 and the Air quality status is very poor,'' an official release said.

About 2,000 cases have been registered by police across Tamil Nadu against those who violated the Supreme Court directives in respect of firecrackers, police sources said on Friday. The Haryana government had imposed a ban on the sale or use of all kinds of firecrackers in 14 of its districts in the National Capital Region. Green crackers were allowed on Diwali in Uttar Pradesh only for two hours in areas with moderate or better air quality.

In West Bengal, except for some pockets in south Kolkata very few cases of firecracker bursting were reported from the state capital on Kali Puja night even though the air quality in the metropolis dipped from moderate to poor, a West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) official said.

''The dip in air quality cannot be entirely attributed to the fireworks issue and more due to the moisture and the emissions from vehicular traffic as a higher number of vehicles hit the road on the Kali puja night,'' the WBPCB official said.

The Calcutta High Court had directed that all necessary efforts must be made by the West Bengal government to ensure that only green crackers are used during Diwali-Kali Puja and other ensuing festivals, observing that the sincerity of the state would be reflected in the enforcement mechanism.

According to the CPCB, the AQI was moderate in aharastra capital Mumbai, though it was poor in Navi Mumbai and Nashik.

In Hyderabad, two persons were killed and another injured in an explosion of firecrackers during Diwali celebrations. Incidents of fire and burn injuries were also reported in many parts of the country during Diwali night.

The Delhi Fire Service received 152 fire-related calls on Diwali, the lowest in the last 15 years, officials said.

The DFS control room usually responds to maximum calls on Diwali, and fire-fighters need to be on their toes to deal with emergencies, they said.

Fire tenders and motorcycles fitted with fire-fighting equipment were deployed in many places.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)