India’s air pollution mitigation action is hugely concentrated in cities and often ignores the rural parts of the country, a new report said on Wednesday.
The report, ‘Status of urban and rural air quality exposure at a national scale: A comparative analysis’, by Climate Trends revealed that air pollution continues to be a significant problem affecting both rural and urban populations.
According to the analysis, PM 2.5 levels in the rural and urban regions across India are not very different.
While these have witnessed a similar trend of decline over the last few years, levels continue to be higher than safe limits in most states.
PM 2.5 is fine inhalable particles, with diameters that are generally 2.5 micrometers and smaller. Rural regions saw PM 2.5 levels decline by 19.1 per cent, and urban regions recorded an 18.7 per cent dip in PM 2.5 levels between 2017 and 2022, according to the analysis.
To bring focus on the possible impacts of air pollution on the country’s rural population, Climate Trends used Dr Sagnik Dey’s PM 2.5 SAANS data (satellite data) and the Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL) data for urban and rural classification to analyse the air pollution levels across states between 2017 and 2022.
The analysis also showed that with a reduction of 37.8 per cent and 38.1 per cent in urban and rural PM 2.5 levels, respectively, Uttar Pradesh has recorded the best progress from 2017 to 2022.
Maharashtra was the worst performing state, with only a dip of 7.7 per cent in its urban PM 2.5 levels, while with a decrease of 8.2 per cent in its rural PM 2.5 levels, Gujarat made the least progress.
The Union Territories (UTs) of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, too, made little progress, with approximately a 4-7 per cent decrease in PM 2.5 from 2017 to 2022.
With urban PM 2.5 levels up by 0.3 per cent, Chandigarh was the only union territory or state to see an increase.
The analysis also highlights the value of satellite data in tracking the air pollution problem in the country.
While satellite data has some limitations since it is retrieved from aerosol optical depth (AOD) and not the direct PM2.5 monitoring, this 1 km by 1km data set provides a holistic spread across the country, which the expensive ground-based monitoring network of Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) stations currently do not cover.
Since rural areas are largely excluded from the air quality monitoring programme, the CAAQMS data supplied to validate the satellite-derived data results in a more homogenised outlook between the urban and rural air pollution levels.
However, the data is widely published in scientific journals and can give a starting point to highlight the need for a better rural monitoring network and for air pollution mitigation efforts to extend beyond the cities.
Inspiring voices of India’s women panchayat leaders resonate at UN meet
Supriya Das Datta from Tripura, Kunuku Hema Kumari from Andhra Pradesh, and Neeru Yadav from Rajasthan shared their experiences and innovations in local governance and advancing the localisation of sustainable development goals (SDGs) in many thematic areas.
Locals’ stage road blockades remanding power restoration, lift stir after assurance
Residents of Kulubari under Sonamura Sub-divison frustrated by the prolonged lack of electricity, staged a blockade on the Sonamura Boxanagar road demanding immediate action.
20 Company jawans of TSR to go Himachal Pradesh and Odisha for poll duty
The Tripura State Rifles (TSR), renowned as an elite counter-insurgency force, is currently gearing up for election duty in various regions across India. Recent reports indicate that 20 companies, totaling 1,600 personnel,
Club Secretary murder row: Court sends two to four days Police Remand
The Chief Judicial Magistrate Court of West District has remanded two individuals, including a woman, to police custody until May 7 in connection with the murder of Durga Prasanna Deb, also known as Viki, who served as the secretary of the Bharat Ratna Sangha club in Agartala which is the largest social club of Tripura.
Two held for involving in human trafficking case in Tripura
Speaking with reporters on Saturday, Officer-In-Charge of Government Railway Police Station, Tapas Das, stated that the arrests were made based on the interrogation of six Bangladeshi nationals who were detained on April 30 at Agartala Railway Station after illegally crossing the international border.
Mini School Bus mishap leaves driver critically injured, children slightly hurt
In a harrowing incident today, a mini school bus belonging to a private school met with a grave accident in the vicinity of Paschim Dewan Pasha Gram Panchayat.
Rs 1.22 crore power infrastructure destroyed in thunderstorm struck Tripura
A thunderstorm that struck Tripura on Thursday has destroyed power infrastructure worth Rs 1.22 crores, including 166 km of crucial transmission lines, 235 electric poles, and 30 transformers suffering irreparable damage.
Mayor distributes water, fruits to common people
In a thoughtful gesture to combat the scorching summer heat, Ward No. 35 of Agartala Municipal Corporation extended a refreshing hand to the common people.