[Watch] Toxic Foam In Yamuna As Delhi Grapples With ‘Very Poor’ Air Quality

New Delhi: At a time the air quality index in Delhi dipped further on Friday, thick layer of toxic foam was spotted in the Yamuna river at Kalindi Kunj area.

With visuals of the white froth surfacing, the question that arises is what causes this foam? According to reports, experts believe that the release of poorly treated or even completely untreated sewage is responsible for the frothing and foaming of the river water.

Surfactants and phosphates that originate from detergents used in households and industrial laundries, when released in the river untreated, create the foam, reported The Weather Channel.

It has also been alleged by experts that illegal jeans-making units set up close to the river banks dump chemical waste—mainly the substances used to dye denims—in the river. High levels of ammonia from other chemical pollutants also contribute to the pollution.

Various media reports had claimed in the past that according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), many sewage treatment plants being non-operational and effluent treatment plants not functioning properly were adding to the problem.

New Delhi in red again: ‘Very poor’ air quality

On Friday, multiple monitoring stations recorded the Air Quality Index hovering near the 300 mark, which indicates ‘very poor’ air quality. The overall air quality stood at 293, worse than the previous 24-hour average of 285, reports claimed.

Meanwhile, officials in Delhi’s Anand Vihar area were undertaking measures such as sprinkling water on roads to tackle air pollution. The Graded Response Action Plan-1 (Grap-1) is already in place to improve air quality in Delhi, according to the New Indian Express.

Dust Pollution Control Self-Assessment portal

Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), on Thursday, launched a Dust Pollution Control Self-Assessment portal, the New Indian Express reported. It will now be mandatory for all construction and demolition projects in the national capital to register on the portal and upload dust control audits regularly.

In line with the directives issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on December 20, 2021, all construction and demolition (C&D) projects occupying a plot area of 500 square metre or more will have to register on the portal, a notice from the Delhi pollution control authority read.

BJP’s mask protest: ‘Delhi has become a gas chamber’

The depleting air quality in Delhi has once again triggered the political blamegame with the BJP accusing the AAP-led Delhi government of not taking adequate measures to tackle the situation.  BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla, wearing a gas mask, reached the ‘Smog Tower’ on Friday morning to protest against air pollution. “Today Delhi has become a gas chamber due to blame game politics of Aam Aadmi Party. They had made big promises that they would make Delhi pollution-free. Look at the condition of Yamuna today and Delhi has become a gas chamber. Aam Aadmi Party bans firecrackers on Diwali but the smog tower on which Rs 23 crore was spent has been locked,” he told the ANI.

What is a ‘Smog Tower’?

There is a Smog Tower in Delhi’s Cannaught Place. It has been lying non-functional. The tower, equipped with thousands of filters is designed to capture pollution particles and improve air quality in densely populated areas. It was set up in 2021 at a cost of about $2.5 million.