Prashant Nikale
Nashik: The air pollution which was identified as the issue of the major cities like Delhi and Mumbai is now gripping the tier-II cities too. The cities like Nashik and Jalgaon are getting identified in the list of polluted cities in the country.
Various organizations in the country are saying in their annual report that Nashik city is witnessing air pollution. In a recent report published by Greenpeace organization has found that Nashik is also one of the cities in the country who has failed to maintain the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS).
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has set parameters for clean air in NAAQS. According to the standards, the concentration of the Prominent Pollutant 10 (PM10) should not increase than 60μg/m3.
As per the report generated by Greenpeace, the annual concentration in Nashik city is on an average 85 of the PM10, which is not as per the standards laid by CPCB. On the other hand, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has set this limit to 20μg/m3.
As per the report of Greenpeace, there are around 287 cities in the country which are air polluted. Out of them more than 80% that is 231 cities/towns had PM10 levels exceeding the 60 ug/m limits, implying that all these cities/towns belong to the non-attainment cities list.
This is more than double the original 102 non-attainment cities initially identified by the Ministry of Environment in 2015. Based on 2018 annual data, Maharashtra had 21 such non-attainment cities. “Whereas the CPCB list submitted to National Green Tribunal (NGT), in August 2019 collectively, only mentions only 9 non-attainment cities in the states.
This still leaves major parts of these geographies where air quality is not being monitored; otherwise most of those would have also come under the non-attainment list”, states the report.
Senior campaigner from Greenpeace, Avinash Chanchal explained, “The air quality data we have collected to make this report is from CPCB only.
The cities which have air monitoring stations in country are only included in the report. If the monitoring is done in other cities too, the scenario will be much worst. The problem with the air pollution is that it is not visible till it’s gone out of hand like Delhi. The impact is there and signs too; the people will have to make aware themselves to tackle the issue.”
The report has clarified that Nashik soon to be a smart city is facing issue of air pollution. The government agencies and Nashikites will have to make necessary efforts to tackle the issue, before it goes out of hand.
