Karnataka: Five centres to monitor air quality

Bengaluru: With the city expanding fast and the rapid increase in the number of vehicles, air pollution has become a cause for concern.

Taking into account the increase in PM 2.5 and PM 10 level pollutants, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has installed five continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations monitoring stations (CAAQMS) in different parts of the city.

KSPCB chairman Laxman said that once the process is standardized, on the lines of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), it will upload live updates about the level of pollution on its website.

“All the five monitoring stations are in the process of standardization. Currently, we upload the data monthly, but after standardization, we will update it on a daily basis,” Laxman said.

Along with the five CAQQMS, the city has 15 manual air monitoring stations. The new monitoring stations have been installed at Kavika on Mysore Road, Nimhans, Hebbal, Silk Board and Jayanagar 5th block.

According to KSPCB Chairman each monitoring station will cost around Rs 1 crore. He further added that the result of the air quality monitoring will be shared with the BBMP and the transport department.

However, Mahesh Kashyap, a consultant with Centre for Sustainable Development (CSD) is of the opinion that the new five air monitoring stations is inadequate to cater to the large population of the city.

“According to World Health Organisation, there has to be one monitoring station for every 10 lakh people, but the European standards are different. We need more monitoring stations for the vast area like Bengaluru. However, something is better than nothing,” Kashyap said. The live updates on air quality would help the commuters to know about the most polluted area. The KSPCB is also planning to spread awareness amongst the general public about the ramifications of bad air quality.