(Eds: Recasting overnight story)New Delhi, Oct 10 (PTI) With the Supreme Court banningthe sale of firecrackers in the Delhi-NCR region till afterDiwali, can Delhiites breathe a sigh of relief?Not yet, say experts. The air of Delhi is saturated withpollutants, and the city's dark clouds would need more thanthis silver lining.
But experts welcomed the Supreme Court order yesterday,banning the sale of firecrackers in Delhi-National CapitalRegion (NCR) till October 31 in an effort to check pollutionthis festival of lights.
Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan has urged peopleto abide by the Supreme Court guidelines and "give greenDiwali and our environment a chance".
Experts also emphasised the importance on sustained focusin tackling the menace and said firecrackers cause episodicspikes in levels of air pollutants.
"It is a welcome move. The air of Delhi is anywaysaturated with pollutants at this time of the season as paddystubble burning starts and temperature drops. Diwali fireworksonly compound the problem," Bhure Lal, chairman, EnvironmentPollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) said.
Going by the prevailing conditions, wherein the airquality is already 'very poor' in many parts of the city, thesituation may spiral out of control if firecrackers are setoff indiscriminately during Diwali, according to SAFAR.
However, the 24-hour average AQI (air quality index) is'poor', a shade better than 'very poor', it said.
Vardhan, in a series of tweets, said firecrackers causenumerous lung ailments and trigger high blood pressure andanxiety.
"And of course, we must spare a thought for poor birdsand animals who spend a terrible evening scared by all thefire & noise," he tweeted.
A "very poor" AQI essentially means that people maysuffer from respiratory illness on prolonged exposure to suchair. On further dip in air quality, the AQI will turn"severe".
"The ban would ensure that the levels of air pollutantsdo not reach as high a limit as they did last year aroundDiwali. With meteorological conditions not being favourablefor dispersing dust and particulate matter in a shortinterval, the regulation is a step in the right direction,"Ajay Mathur, director general of TERI, said.
According to a report on composition of firecrackersprepared by Pune-based Chest Research Foundation, they emitextremely high levels of PM 2.5 over a short period of timewith the 'snake tablet' variety producing a peak level of64,850 ug/m3 (micro grams per cubic metre).
The 24-hour prescribed average of PM 2.5, which areultra fine pollutants measuring 30 times thinner than a humanhair, is 60.
Greenpeace India also welcomed the SC decision, sayingthe verdict might provide some relief from the episodic airpollution spikes in the city in October i.e. during Diwali.
"However, the pollution levels in north India aremultiple times higher than the national standards throughoutthe winter months, hence we also need to look at a stricter,comprehensive and time-bound action plan to address allsources of air pollution across the country," it said in astatement.
A report prepared by the the Central Pollution ControlBoard (CPCB) on the health hazards of chemicals and metalspresent in firecrackers lists toxic dust and carcinogenic(cancer-causing) compounds.
According to the report, many gaseous pollutants emitteddue to bursting of firecrackers remain airborne for days,posing danger to children and unborn babies.
A study by a team of scientists of IIT Kanpur has pointedout that during Diwali, PM levels nearly double from theaverage level and the organic content of PM increases morethan twice.
"It is noteworthy that levels of potassium and barium,main components of firecrackers, can increase by about tentimes," it says. PTI SBR TDS SRY MGMIN.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.