Light rain cleans up air, AQI improves to ‘poor’ in Noida, Greater Noida
On Tuesday, the AQI in Noida was 261 (poor) as against 334 (very poor) recorded on Monday.The AQI of Greater Noida was 274 (poor) on Tuesday as against 361 (very poor) recorded on Monday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)’s, daily bulletin
Light rain in the twin cities of Noida and Greater Noida on Monday and again on Tuesday afternoon has helped abate air pollution levels, which have remained in the “very poor” category of the air quality index (AQI) scale since the past several days, said district officials.
On Tuesday, the AQI in Noida was 261 (poor) as against 334 (very poor) recorded on Monday.The AQI of Greater Noida was 274 (poor) on Tuesday as against 361 (very poor) recorded on Monday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)’s, daily bulletin.
The live AQI recorded by the CPCB showed the lowest AQI of 250 in Sector 1, followed by Sector 125 with an AQI of 257, Sector 116 with an AQI of 262 and Sector 62 with the day’s highest AQI of 276.
In Greater Noida, Knowledge Park 3 station was non-functional, while Knowledge Park 5 recorded an AQI of 274 (poor) on Tuesday.
According to the AQI scale, readings between 0 and 50 are considered “good”, 51 and 100 are “satisfactory”, 101 and 200 are “moderate”, 201 and 300 are “poor”, 301 and 400 are “very poor”, and 401 and 500 are “severe”.
Environment experts and officials at the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) said the improvement was caused by the increase in wind speed and light to moderate showers over the past two days in the National Capital Region (NCR).
Regional officer, UPPCB Noida, Utsav Sharma said, “The change in weather conditions such as steady surface winds and moderate showers have certainly resulted in improved air quality in Noida and Greater Noida. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had forecast mild showers in the region in the coming days and we are expecting the air quality to improve even more.”
Local environment activist Vikrant Tongad said, “The changes in environment conditions are primarily responsible for the improvement. Though air pollution tends to increase as the temperatures dip, the moderate rain washed away pollutants to some extent, thereby easing the air pollution.”
The minimum and maximum temperature in Gautam Budh Nagar on Tuesday was recorded 15.4 and 24.0 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) revoked measures under Stage 3 of the graded response action plan in the Delhi-NCR on Tuesday. This means that the ban on construction and demolition activities and work at industrial sites has been lifted.