JOIN USUnlock effect: 90% spike in Bengaluru's air pollution
Tying the city's air pollution to the petrol and diesel combustion, a new analysis of satellite data by Greenpeace has shown a 90% spike in the Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) in Bengaluru while Delhi and Chennai fared worse.
In the latest report, 'Behind the Smokescreen' released on Wednesday, researchers from Greenpeace analysed air pollution data for April from eight cities and compared it with the corresponding period last year.
NO2, mainly generated by consumption of fossil fuel in vehicles, power generation and industries, is known to cause serious respiratory-related ailments, including asthma.
"There is growing evidence that polluted cities suffer disproportionately more coronavirus cases," the study said, noting that increased economic activity is still dependent on burning of coal, oil and gas and consequently coupled with the emission of toxic gases in many cities.
In April 2020, like many other states, Karnataka was under a tight lockdown. The government started imposing restrictions on April 23 this year. data for 10 km radius of Bengaluru measured in Dobson Units (DU) showed that the NO2 concentration went up from 0.085 in April 2020 to 0.161 to April 2021, a spike of 89.41%.
The observed data showed that in Delhi, the increase of NO2 levels during this period was 125%, followed by Chennai (94%), Bengaluru (90%), Hyderabad (69%), Mumbai (52%), Jaipur (47%), Lucknow (32%) and Kolkata (11%).
"The disruption caused by the pandemic is a case to transition to cleaner, equitable and sustainable decentralised energy sources such as rooftop solar and clean and sustainable mobility must be central to recovery efforts across cities. The recovery from the pandemic must not come at the expense of a return to previous levels of air pollution,” said Avinash Chanchal, Senior Climate Campaigner, Greenpeace India.