Demand for action plan as lockdown improved ambient air quality in Gujarat

By Our Representative
The Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) has found that there has been a considerable improvement in the ambient air quality during the lockdown in the Gujarat capital Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad’s Vatva and Maninagar areas, and two south Gujarat industrial towns, Ankleshwar and Vapi.
Citing an official report, Mahesh Pandya of the NGO Paryavaran Mitra said, while in Gandhinagar the pollution was already under control and things further improved, the PM10 – very small particles found in dust and smoke – in rest of the spots the air quality was considerably poorer than the prescribed limit set by the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) before the lockdown, but improved, becoming almost normal during the lockdown.
In a letter to GPCB chairman Mukesh Puri, Pandya has demanded that, based on GPCB report, “We demand that GPCB formulate a comprehensive air pollution control action plan after taking a view of various stakeholders”. Five different parameters were analysed while studying the air quality -- PM10, PM2.5, carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and oxides of nitrogen.

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