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Shark Tank judge Vineeta Singh calls for China-like measures as Mumbai AQI nears poor level
In a video posted to her handle on Instagram, Singh highlighted that the air quality index (AQI) in Mumbai had crossed 160 in the morning.
Shark Tank judge and entrepreneur Vineeta Singh on Thursday voiced her concern on the deteriorating air quality in Mumbai, while calling for strict measures to be taken to control the pollution crisis.
Singh, the co-founder of Sugar Cosmetics, said that if measures to control the pollution are not introduced “one in nine Indians are likely to develop cancer” in their lifetime. Citing an ICMR study, Singh said lung cancer and breast cancer were the “e leading sites of cancer in males and females.”
In a video posted to her handle on Instagram, Singh highlighted that the air quality index (AQI) in Mumbai had crossed 160 in the morning.
“When I went out today, I saw that there were little school kids who were standing at bus stops, there were old people who were walking, my own son's gone for a school picnic, there were people working out – when you work out you are actually doubling your breaths per minute and your exposure is much higher,” Singh said, underscoring the urgency to handle the crisis.
She questioned if action would be taken after the AQI crosses 200 in the city. The entrepreneur further suggested some curbs, including pausing construction activities for some months.
“…At least have strict dust and pollution control measures at these pollution sites just like China and Korea,” she said, while also saying that given Mumbai's humidity, cloud seeding could be an alternative.
Mumbai AQI
Mumbai AQI on Wednesday almost slipped into the “poor” category but slightly improved and remained to the moderate level on Thursday.
According to the 4 pm bulletin by the Central Pollution Control Board, Mumbai’s overall AQI was 198 (moderate) on Wednesday, up from 168 on Tuesday, and just three points away from “poor”.
At 2 pm on Thursday, Mumbai's overall AQI stood at 172, according to CPCB's Sameer app. However, six monitoring stations recorded air quality in the ‘poor’ category, with Mulund West recording the worst AQI reading at 255.
As per the CPCB, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 to 100 "satisfactory", 101 to 200 "moderate", 201 to 300 "poor", 301 to 400 "very poor" and 401 to 500 "severe".
