Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Published by
Department of Environment, Government of NCT of Delhi
&
Delhi Pollution Control Committee
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www.environment.delhigovt.nic.in
www.dpcc.delhigovt.nic.in
employment.
What
was
essentially
an
saw
an
unprecedented
growth
in
have
provided
opportunities
for
has
with
ambient air.
significant
shift
towards
industry,
irritation
increased
shortness of breath.
of
eyes
mucous
and
respiratory
production,
system,
cough
and
Oxides of Nitrogen
The Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx) are formed during
the combustion processes mainly because of
oxidation of atmospheric nitrogen and to a lesser
degree by oxidation of organic nitrogen in fuels.
The transport and industrial sectors are the major
Oxides of Sulphur
and
mineral
based
industries.
i.e.,
construction
extensive
activities,
urbanization
increasing
and
vehicular
population,
captive
and
domestic
power
Carbon Monoxide
Monoxide
displaces
Oxygen,
leading
to
Matter (RSPM)
fatal.
Lead
Ozone
traffic/road dusts.
reduced
resistance
to
colds.
It
can
also
Benzene
The
major
anthropogenic.
sources
of
benzene
are
Hydrocarbons
Hydrocarbons are fine particles of unburnt liquid
fuel. Hydrocarbons may be carcinogenic and
some of the compounds are strong irritants of the
eyes, nose and throat.
Delhis Pollution
Delhi, in terms of air pollution, was ranked fourth
among the 41 most polluted cities in the world, in
90s.
The
annual
average
levels
of
the
The
the
presence
of
natural
meteorological conditions.
dust
due
to
Figure 3 indicates
Meteorological Conditions
monsoon
season
witnesses
of
dust
particles
in
Delhi's
atmosphere.
the
least
Vehicular Pollution
Delhi has experienced an exponential growth in
two decades.
During
winter,
ground-based
NOx
HC
PM
Delhi
421.84
110.45
184.37
12.77
Mumbai
189.55
46.37
89.93
10.58
Kolkata
137.50
54.09
47.63
10.8
Chennai
177.00
27.30
95.64
7.29
Banglore
207.04
29.72
117.37
8.11
Hyderabad
163.95
36.89
90.09
8.0
Kanpur
28.75
7.25
11.7
1.91
Agra
17.93
3.30
10.28
0.91
soot
(the
technical
term
for
which
is
Industrial Pollution
Delhi was the fuel combustion by both largescale and small-scale industries.
air pollution.
as
most
of
buses
were
old
and
poorly
Power Station (Unit no. 5) in 1998 reached an alltime high of 422 mg/Nm3 as against the national
standard of 150 mg/Nm3.
By 1996, the total number of small-scale industries
in Delhi grew to a record number of 1,26,000 and
unfortunately, most of the growth was witnessed in
the pollution intensive areas and sectors.
In addition, significant pollution was also caused by
a large number of Diesel Generating (DG) Sets,
which were installed in various commercial and
industrial establishments.
The erratic power supply was the raison detre for
the phenomenal increase in the number and use of
DG sets.
It
of
an
thermal
efficient
transport
system,
plants,
greater
power
lead in petrol.
On July 28, 1998, while hearing a Public Interest
Litigation the Honble Supreme Court directed,
among other things, the replacement of all pre
1990 auto-rickshaws and retrofitting all the post -
Vehicular Pollution
stations.
recommendations
This
of
was
based
Environment
on
the
Pollution
as
explained in Table 2
1996
Emission norms
made stringent as
compared to 1991
1998
Fuel Quality
improvement
Fuel quality
specification notified
under EPA for the
first time.
2000
Euro-I equivalent
norms for all types
of vehicles except
passenger vehicles
which are EURO-II
equivalent
CNG/LPG
norms
finalized
Diesel sulphur
reduced to 0.25%.
Gasoline Benzene
reduced to 3.0%
Gasoline Lead
phased out
Diesel sulphur
reduced to 0.05%
in selected outlets
Gasoline benzene
reduced to 1.0%
Gasoline sulphur
with 0.05%
maximum sulphur
in all outlet.
Low smoke 2-T oil
introduced.
Diesel with
0.05% sulphur
throughout
retail outlets in
NCT.
All taxis/autos
and buses to
run on CNG.
Other measures
2001 (Jan-June)
15 years old
commercial vehicle
banned.
Pre-mix 2T oil in
retail outlets.
and
other
public
transport
September, 2001.
The co-ordinated measures for effecting the
switchover were put in place by the Govt. of Delhi
through multipronged action as different agencies
were responsible for ensuring the environment
CNG being lead/sulphur
free, its use substantially
reduces harmful engine
emissions. Besides, the
operational cost of vehicles
running on CNG, as
compared to those running
on other fuels, is amazingly
low.
friendliness
of
transportation
Delhi
public
namely
Transport
Corporation
Indraprasth
(DTC),
Gas
Ltd.
Dept.
Environment.
of
Certainly,
as
neither
the
CNG
vehicle
Nowhere in the
needs
of
the
an
urban
metropolis
environmental
quality
parameters.
mg/Nm3
notified
by
the
Ministry
of
Small-Scale Industries
The excessive increase in the number of smallscale industries in Delhi was also responsible for
an increase in the pollution levels in Delhi.
In 1996, Honble Supreme Court while hearing a
Public Interest Litigation passed various orders to
close down the 1328 H category units, i.e., Hot
mix plants, lead smelting units, stone crushers,
Table 3. Annual Average Emissions from Coal Based/Gas Based Thermal Power Plants Located in Delhi
Year
Rajghat Thermal
Power Station
I.P. Thermal
Power Station
(247.5 MW)
1993-94
144
Badarpur
Thermal Power
Station
(705 MW)
145
1994-95
139
140
1995-96
142
210
137
1996-97
144
275
135
1997-98
145
166
132
1998-99
149
210
130
1999-00
127
190
127
2000-01
125
180
125
2001-02
127
135
120
1.68
2002-03
124
125
115
Remarks
Pragati Power
Station
commissioned in
the year 2002
13
1.
Beneficiated
coal introduced in
the
Thermal
Power Plants.
2.
High
efficiency
ESP
retrofitted in unit
no. V of I.P.
Power Station
Opacity
meter
installed in I.P. and
Rajghat
Power
Station.
Other Measures
Green areas like parks, forests, and gardens are
more than just pastoral views or recreational
spots. Vegetation cleans the air and acts as a
climate moderator. One hectare of wood land
(1000 trees) absorbs as much as 3.7 tonnes of
CO2 from the atmosphere and gives out 2.5
tonnes of life sustaining oxygen.
Mass awareness
No environment programme can succeed without
mass
awareness
among
the
people.
By
The
g/m
and
Time weighted
average
Annual Average
80 g/m3
60 g/m3
Annual Average
80 g/m3
60 g/m3
Annual Average
360 g/m3
140 g/m3
Annual Average
120 g/m3
60 g/m3
8 Hours
5000 g/m3
2000 g/m3
Lead
Annual Average
1.0 g/m3
0.75 g/m3
USEPA Standards
(Maximum acceptable outdoor exposures)
Pollutants
Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)
Time weighted
average
Annual Average
Concentration
in Ambient
80 g/m3
Annual Average
100 g/m3
24 hour average
150 g/m3
8 Hours
10000 g/m3
Lead
Annual Average
1.5 g/m3
Ozone
8 Hour average
156 g/m3
Sulphur Dioxide
The figure 4 shows that over the last few years,
the levels of SO2 have drastically come down in
the ambient air. Annual mean SO2 levels were
observed as 18.03 g/m3, 14.1 g/m3, 11.3 g/m3
in the year 2000, 2001 and 2002 respectively.
SO2 levels decreased by 21.8 % & 19.6 % in the
year 2001 & 2002 respectively. The annual mean
SO2 levels in Delhi satisfy the annual average of
National Ambient Air quality Standards for
residential areas, which is 60 g/m3.
Nitrogen Dioxide
Respirable
(RSPM) or PM10
Suspended
Particulate
particulate
matter
Matter
(SPM)
Lead
This could be
norms,
fuel
quality
up-gradation
and
Though the
The
exposure
to
methyl-isocyanate
(MIC)
exposure
individual's susceptibility.
duration
and
the
In general, after an
thereafter.
impacts
on
account
of
air
pollution
were
degradation.
follows:
between
non-traumatic
United States.
positive,
particulate
significant
pollution
relationship
and
daily
call
that
increase in deaths.
most
likely
explained
by
differences
in
into
question
the
procedure,
validity
of
the
concentration-response
Medical
at a hospital in Delhi.
Sciences,
New
Delhi
studied
the
acute
coronary
event
was
obtained
in
there
cardio
is
considerable
burden
of
Delhi,
Vallabhai
Patel
Chest
Institute
World
Health
Report
2002
attributes
in
recent
years
as
already