‘Very Poor’ Air Quality At 5 Places In Odisha, ULBs Asked To Initiate Measures For Dust Control

Bhubaneswar: Amid concern over significant decline in overall air quality in urban areas, including Bhubaneswar, the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) has asked all urban local bodies (ULBs) to monitor and control dust emission from construction activities.

They have also been advised to sprinkle water on roads to settle down the dust particles.

Angul was second worst in terms of air quality among the Indian cities with air quality index (AQI) of 357 next to Noida (AQI 359) at 4 pm on Tuesday. Four other cities.town in Odisha – Balasore (AQI 338), Baripada (AQI 321), Bhubaneswar (AQI 334) and Cuttack (338) – figured in very poor category. The index value of particulate matter (PM) 2.5, a major pollutant in the air, stood at 338 milligram per cubic metre (mg/m3) in Cuttack and Balasore, 334 mg/m3 in Bhubaneswar, and 321 mg/m3 in Baripada. This apart, the pollution level at Keonjhar, Talcher and Vyasanagar were in the range of 2oo-300 mg/m3 respectively.

An AQI value of 50 or below represents good air quality while an AQI value over 300 represents hazardous air quality. Prolonged exposure to “very poor” AQI is likely to cause respiratory illness, as per the CPCB.

Member secretary of OSPCB K Murugesan said that the current surge in air pollution is temporary. He attributed decline in air quality to ongoing construction activities and dust particles, which are expected to improve once wind flow increases.