Air quality in many UP towns ‘severe’

DOCS ADVISE PRECAUTIONS The state capital has been witnessing poor air quality since Nov

LUCKNOW: The air quality in many districts of the state worsened on Wednesday, with Ghaziabad figuring among the most polluted cities in the country. Varanasi, Kanpur, Lucknow and Noida appeared under the ‘severe’ category, as per the air quality index (AQI) chart of the Central Pollution Control Board.

The air index value in Ghaziabad at 4 pm was registered at 454 (severe category). The permissible level is 60 microgram per cubic metre air. The air index value in Varanasi was 435 (severe category), Kanpur 422 (severe), Lucknow 418 (severe) and Noida 408 (severe).

The AQI in Moradabad was 395 (very poor) and in Agra 391 (very poor).

The state capital has over 19 lakh registered vehicles, one of the key contributers to pollution.

Doctor advised people to take precautions. “At individual level we can delay early morning activity. But in a collective way we need to make sure unnecessary use of vehicles is avoided,” said Prof Kauser Usman, senior faculty, department of medicine, King George’s Medical University. “While moving out of the house people, specially the elderly, need to take precautions if they have breathing problems,” he said.

The state capital has been witnessing poor air quality since November and this has led to a rise in the number of patients with breathing disorders. Doctors said those having breathing problem needed to be extra careful while moving out of their houses .

On November 13 afternoon, the fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) – the nasty air pollutant – touched a new high of 695.97 micrograms per cubic metre air (the permissible limit is 60 micrograms per cubic metre air).

The minimum temperature in Lucknow on Wednesday was recorded at 7.9 degrees Celsius which was normal. The forecast for Lucknow and adjoining area for the next 24 hour is mainly clear sky. Shallow fog is very likely in the morning. Maximum and minimum temperature would be around 23 and 8 degree Celsius respectively.

The met department forecast for the state says weather is most likely to remain dry, shallow to moderate fog is very likely at a

few places over the state. The met department has issued warning for dense to very dense fog very likely at isolated places over the state.