The average daily PM 2.5 AQI has been recorded to be higher than 300. Around 99 per cent of vehicles in Kolkata run on diesel, which is a major contributor to the increasing PM 2.5 levels.
Kolkata has dethroned Delhi in the last week of November to claim the seat of the most polluted city in the country, as reported by India Today.
Kolkata has two machines to record pollution levels – one is located in Victoria Memorial and the other on BT Road.
In an interview with India Today, Ajay Mittal, co-founder of Kolkata Clean Air, said,
I have been monitoring the pollution level for over a month now and every day I have noticed that the level has consistently been over 300. This level should be between 0 – 250. The prominent pollutant is always PM 2.5.
The commercial and residential areas around the city are facing severe problems where readings hovering around 406 are being recorded even on Sundays.
Talking to India Today, Joyeesha Sarbadhikary, explained the problems the residents are facing,
Due to increasing pollution, we are facing a lot of problems like irritation in the eyes, asthma problems, coughing and sneezing. We already had the traffic problems and now with that, this is also a major problem in Kolkata.
Ajay Mittal also had a few suggestions about how to rectify the problem,
The first step I think is that the government shouldn’t be blamed. The consumption pattern among people is what results in this level of pollution and the government should take responsibility for this.
Pollution is one of the major problems plaguing India and it is high time that the government took some huge steps to rectify it.
