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Why air in Anand Vihar, Vivek Vihar is more polluted than Delhi avg

By, New Delhi
Nov 01, 2022 12:19 AM IST

Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai said DPCC has identified ongoing construction work on the Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor, local dust and pollution from diesel buses plying from a bus terminus on the Uttar Pradesh side as the three key reasons for higher pollution at these locations

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) has identified Anand Vihar and Vivek Vihar — both in east Delhi — as one of the most polluted areas where air quality has remained ‘severe’ for the past five consecutive days.

A dense blanket of smog shrouds Kaushambi in Delhi in the early hours of Sunday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)
A dense blanket of smog shrouds Kaushambi in Delhi in the early hours of Sunday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

To be sure, Delhi’ s average AQI is yet to hit ‘severe’ level (AQI value between 401-500) this season. Delhi’s average AQI, according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s daily 4pm bulletin, was recorded at 392 (very poor).However, it plunged to 402 by 8.45pm on Monday.

Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai said DPCC has identified ongoing construction work on the Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor, local dust and pollution from diesel buses plying from a bus terminus on the Uttar Pradesh side as the three key reasons for higher pollution at these locations.

A look at CPCB data shows the primary pollutant at both these locations is PM 10, which generally comprises of the coarser dust particles. In the last seven days, while no average AQI for both the locations available on October 25, the average AQI on October 27 at Anand Vihar was 356 (very poor) and 287 (poor) at Vivek Vihar. For the next five days, both locations recorded ‘severe’ air, with the highest reading of 458 at Anand Vihar and 426 at Vivek Vihar, both on October 29.

Anand Vihar is a transport hub, with a high concentration of vehicular emissions and road dust, and the Sahibabad industrial area and the Ghazipur landfill situated in close proximity. Vivek Vihar, located just a kilometre away, is sandwiched between the Jhilmil industrial area and the busy GT Road and Anand Vihar.

“We know Anand Vihar has a pollution problem and it has consistently recorded higher than normal pollution levels as compared to the rest of Delhi over the last few years. If PM 10 is the lead pollutant, then that shows there is re-suspension of dust taking place and with high congestion and vehicular traffic, due to presence of a busy Inter State Bus Terminus (ISBT),” said Professor Mukesh Khare, an air pollution expert from IIT Delhi.

During a spot check on Sunday, HT found road dust to be particularly high near Anand Vihar ISBT and the railway station. Incidentally, the construction site for RRTS is also not far from the transport hub. Even though water was being sprinkled at the work site, there were no dust barriers or wind-breakers on either side, and the construction material was also not covered.

While construction and demolition (C&D) activities are banned, according to Stage-III of the Graded Response Action Plan, which came into force from Saturday onwards, railway projects are exempted under this category.

On Sunday, Rai said that the Delhi government plans to run a special drive in these two areas, and deploy 15 anti-smog guns. “The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has already installed seven water sprinklers and we will also engage the fire brigade to sprinkling water on roads to curb dust,” Rai said. He also requested the UP government to avoid using diesel buses and instead switch to CNG buses.

Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said consistent hight AQI levels at these locations were a clear indication that it was more a local problem.

“With PM10 being the lead pollutant, it shows that this is a local dust problem and the AQI comes down each time it rains as the dust settles down. In the last few years, ever since Anand Vihar was identified as a pollution hot spot, unpaved roads and dust-resuspension was a problem and that will have to be addressed. For Vivek Vihar too, dust is a factor,” she said.

The DPCC and CPCB in the winter of 2018 had jointly identified 13 pollution hot spots for the capital, which features both these locations. The annual PM2.5 concentration at all these sites was found to be hight Delhi’s average levels. Besides Anand Vihar and Vivek Vihar, the other 11 hot spots are Rohini, Dwarka, Okhla Phase-2, Punjabi Bagh, Wazirpur, Jahangirpuri, R.K Puram, Bawana, Mundka, Narela and Mayapuri.

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Stay updated with all top Cities including, Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and more across India. Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News along with Delhi Election 2025 and Delhi Election Result 2025 Live, New Delhi Election Result Live, Kalkaji Election Result Live at Hindustan Times.
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