‘Air pollution at Games venues under control’
Amid reports that the ambient air quality at the Commonwealth Games village and other venues was not up to the mark, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) has maintained that the situation was under control and polluting units were being sealed to reduce air pollution.
As per ongoing study by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (Pune), which has set up air quality monitoring systems at 11 key points in the capital for the CWG as part of the “system of air pollution forecasting and research (SAFAR),” the presence of particulate matter in the air was beyond permissible limits at the Village and all but two Games venues.
The particulate matter 2.5 (PM 2.5) and particular matter 10 (PM10) have been found to be beyond the permissible limit of 200 at most of the places. It is below 200 only at Major Dhyan Chand national stadium for hockey and Talkatora stadium, where too the level goes down only at night.
The study has attributed the presence of suspended particulate to delayed construction, reduced vehicular speed due to the dedicated Games lanes and also vehicular pollution. Further, the fluctuation in the day and night temperatures was also adding to the problem.
Experts felt that particulate matter levels would have been in the manageable range had the construction work been completed a little earlier. However, the levels of ozone, nitrous oxide and carbon monoxide are manageable.
DPCC sources, meanwhile, said that the things were still within manageable levels and the situation was not alarming.
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