With “Festival of lights — Diwali” round the corner, the UT Environment Department has geared up to ensure low decibel and pollution levels in the City Beautiful.
The “Green Diwali” campaign in Chandigarh went for a toss last year as the city had witnessed a noisier and most polluted Diwali as compared to the previous years. This year, the Chandigarh Pollution Control Committee and UT Environment Department will install instruments to check air and noise pollution levels at three places including a silence zone, residential zone and commercial zone here.
Earlier, in 2011, the higher authorities had installed air quality monitoring instruments at seven places during Diwali. A senior official of the UT Environment Department said that the monitoring instruments will be installed at three places in Chandigarh. The air and noise pollution levels will be checked a week before the festival and then, on the occasion of Diwali.
Besides, the authorities concerned will also organize various awareness programmes in educational institutions to ensure a “Green Diwali” this year. The Environment Department has planned an ‘anti-cracker rally’, awareness programmes like quiz, slogan writing competitions among others to spread awareness among children ahead of Diwali.
The UT official said that a week long “Green Diwali” campaign will be observed in the city and eco clubs will organize various programmes in city’s schools under this. The campaign will ensure maximum impact regarding awareness for not using fire crackers in the coming festival Diwali. Notably, the Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) had exceeded the permissible limits in all the areas and was much higher in 2013 than the previous year’s Diwali.
last year, air and noise pollution was observed at three places: Sectors 17, 22 and 29 on the day of Diwali and a week before the festival of Diwali. The maximum air pollution was found in Sector 22 while minimum air pollution was found in City Centre Sector 17. As per the data observed last year, the RSPM levels of 450 µg/m3 at Sector 22, 409 µg/m3 in Sector 29 and 165 µg/m3 in Sector 17 was registered on the day of Diwali against the levels of 280 µg/m3 in Sector 22, 349 µg/m3 in Sector 29 and 207 µg/m3 in Sector 17 recorded during 2012 Diwali.
Also, higher noise level of 77.5 decibel was recoded in Sector 29 from 9 pm to 10 pm this Diwali. In previous 2012, the noise pollution level was 75.9 decibel in Sector 29 at the same time. According to the 2013 data, high noise level of 76.4 decibel from 8 pm to 9 pm and 76.6 decibel from 9 pm to 10 pm was recorded in Sector 22. In city’s commercial complex—Sector 17, level of noise pollution was recorded 74.1 decibel from 8 pm to 9 pm and 69.3 db from 9 pm to 10 pm. The normal noise levels in the city stay at around 60 decibel.