Now, BMC seeks to shift air quality monitors to ‘cleaner’ areas

Mumbai: At the behest of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will formally request the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) to relocate its nine ambient air quality monitors in the city to ‘cleaner’ locations

Mumbai: At the behest of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will formally request the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) to relocate its nine ambient air quality monitors in the city to ‘cleaner’ locations.

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A meeting in this regard has been scheduled for February 7, which will be attended by BMC deputy municipal commissioner (environment), MPCB joint director (air quality) and SAFAR’s project director.

Atul Patil, deputy municipal commissioner (environment), confirmed the same to Hindustan Times on Tuesday. “We have been informed by the MPCB that SAFAR’s monitors are not reflecting accurate air quality because they are all located by the roadside, where traffic emissions are higher than usual. I will be meeting with MPCB and SAFAR officials on Tuesday to discuss the shifting of the monitors,” Patil said.

A junior officer in the environment department added, “The SAFAR monitors are placed on BMC land, and BMC also supplies the electricity to run them. In case they do not agree to relocate the monitors, we may revoke these provisions.”

This revelation came at a time when public interest in Mumbai’s air pollution scenario is at an all-time high, with many relying on the SAFAR data to claim that Delhi’s air is, on many days, less polluted than Mumbai.

When asked to elaborate on the decision to relocate SAFAR’s monitors, VM Motghare, joint director (air), MPCB, refused to comment.

Other than the nine SAFAR monitors, the MPCB also operates at least 11 continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) in the city, which typically record lower pollution levels than SAFAR’s devices.

BS Murthy, project director, SAFAR, did not respond to requests for comment.