Bengaluru: The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data for September indicates that in most parts of the city the air quality improved, and experts attribute it to good rainfall during the month.
The recently released data on ambient air quality monitoring for September shows a significant improvement in the Air Quality Index (AQI) in most parts of the city and they were within tolerable limits.
However, in notoriously polluted areas such as Central Silk Board, HSR Layout flyover, Whitefield the AQI was between 101 and 110, which is in moderate range.
According to CPCB if the AQI is in 101-200 range, it can cause minor discomfort to the people suffering from lung disorders.
The AQI at Silk Board has come down to 101 in September, when compared with 117 in May and at Whitefield, it was 103 in September, as against 131 in May.
One of the senior officers with the KSPCB stated that AQI has improved in the past four months, but the major reason was a good rainfall in September.
KSPCB Chairman Lakshman pointed out that regular inspections and a downfall in the cases of garbage burning can be credited to improvement in the AQI.
“From day 1, we are carrying out inspections of vehicles and working in tandem with the government departments to clear construction dust and curb instances of garbage burning. Above all regular meeting is being held with the stakeholders to plan ways in which we can bring down the pollution,” the chairman added.
One of the major contributors to air pollution was the ever increasing number of private vehicles and the government should adopt policies to encourage use of public transport.
“We want most of people to adopt public transport and this would bring down the pollution level in the city,” Lakshman added.
Mahesh Kashyap, a visiting scientist at IISC, said, “The pollution level in certain areas is higher due to the construction activity and lack of Namma Metro connectivity.”
