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Congestion in Delhi
Once upon a time Delhi in the evening
was a sheer beauty or a bare bane with an endless grey-blue sky with a tinge of orange from the setting sun and the sound of chirping birds.
When the starry skies shine on monumental relics like the lit up India Gate, the Jama
Masjid, the Red Fort, Lotus Temple and over River
Yamuna (यमुना), Delhi becomes a mesmerising beauty.
But now it is touched by the mega city bug with endless high rises blocking a clear view
of the evening sky. With honking cars, crowded public buses and Metro trains, numerous people milling about everywhere, and of course its incessant
pollution, it becomes worse by the end of the day. Very few parks and open fields are to be seen in colonies these days as they are
often surrounded by multi-storied buildings. The city roads in the evenings are often filled with people, their faces tense, clad in formals returning from work, now
caught in noisy traffic snarls. And the holy
River
Yamuna (यमुना), the beauty and lifeline of Delhi is now becomes a dirty
drain..
Concerned over the increasing congestion in Delhi, the supreme court (SC) asked the government on
July 9, 2008 to find a way to shift a large number of people from the capital that lacks infrastructure to house them.
Saying it was conscious of the fundamental right of citizens to live and migrate to any part of the country, the apex court, however, observed, “But at the same time, the need is also fundamental for infrastructure and (it) is also equally important.” |
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Delhi pollution charts
Delhi tops the grim pollution charts released by a World Bank and Asian Development Bank joint study of air pollution for 20 major Asian cities between 2000 and 2003. For most hazardous of particles — PM10, which can even penetrate a face mask — New Delhi has three times more than Hong Kong.
The fact that particulate matter has had a downward curve in Delhi over
four years is because of the success of the CNG programme. Experts feel that this is not enough and if a city like Delhi deals only with technology of vehicles and fuels, the effects will get nullified very soon.
The growing number of vehicles and poor inspection and maintenance of in-use vehicles can completely undo the effects of.
Contrast it with Delhi’s situation where 10,000 cars are being added every
month. See White paper on Pollution in Delhi, Govt. of India |
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The CNN-IBN Outlook State of the Environment Poll
( published in June 5, 2008) asked citizens of six cities across India how they felt for the environment and
environment- related issues.
In fact all those polled in Delhi also voted air pollution was their number one
woe. “Pollution is getting to us and we need to find a solution,” says Center for
Science and Environment, Sunita Narain. If people were given a choice what is the one environmental issue they would
want government to address, a whopping 86 per cent of the people want the
government to plant trees, followed by reducing air pollution, providing clean
drinking water, cleaning up rivers, collecting and segregating garbage and
finally improving public transport. “Why cant bureaucrats and politicians car-pool,” asks environment activist Leo
Saldhana
But are things set to improve? The survey shows, people aren't very hopeful.
Seventy-seven per cent of respondents said air pollution would increase in the
next five years. Seventy per cent said noise pollution would rise and 65 per cent feared water would get more polluted.
Randeep Guleria, a chest specialist at the All-India Institute of Medical
Sciences, the country's largest public hospital, said the high pollution level
triggered asthma in people where the condition previously had been latent.
"We are seeing a lot of such patients, who did not have any problems when they
were outside and when they move to Delhi they suddenly develop symptoms," he
said.
In a survey of almost 12,000 city schoolchildren late last year, 17 per cent
reported coughing, wheezing or breathlessness, compared to just 8 per cent of children in a rural area.
Children across the country are exposed to lead poisoning even in their homes, according to a study conducted by an environmental NGO, which was unveiled on
June 4, 2008: The organisation, Toxics Link, found alarmingly high levels of lead in household dust in New Delhi, with wall paint being the main source. |
4.5 million registered vehicles with 1,000 being added every
day in Delhi
The planned launch of the world's smallest car, the Nano has further heightened concerns about increased congestion in the city |
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Dust wipe samples were collected from floors and window sills in 57 households in Delhi — and 31% of the samples of floor dust and 14% of the window sill dust samples contained levels of lead that would be considered hazardous by the US Environment Protection Agency. "While the study, ‘Dusty toxics: A study on lead in household dust in Delhi,' has been done in only one city, the situation is likely to be similar in other Indian cities.
Lead is a highly toxic heavy metal, and once ingested, it remains within the body and can affect the blood, brain, nerves and intestines. "It can show up as
anemia or abdominal pain in children. At low levels there is a subtle change in
behavior with the child becoming hyperactive or drowsy. It also affects a child's attention span," says Dr
Balasubramanian, senior consultant (pediatrics), Child's Trust Hospital, and president of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics, Chennai.
Delhi is also one of the few Indian cities to have done more than
its fair share to cut air pollution in the last six years. Polluting industries have been relocated, government buses, three-wheelers, and
taxis run on CNG, 15-year-old commercial vehicles are off roads and there is a
tighter control on power plants, but none of this is able to combat 4.5 million
registered vehicles with 1,000 being added every day. Again an ever increasing number of diesel vehicles and the future looks completely dismal.
Recent report
of the Central Pollution Control Board.
The Capital is leading the way with its old city recording the highest pollution level in the country, said a report of the Central Pollution Control Board. The report, accessed
exclusively by HT as it has not been made public yet, said there has been a 19 per cent increase in air pollution in urban areas with 70
per cent of locations above critical levels. Chandni Chowk topped the list of 10 most polluted areas, moving up five
positions from the previous list. Janakpuri debuted in the list, making it two for Delhi.
The environment watchdog measured respirable suspended particulate matter —
whose presence in the air beyond a certain level causes respiratory diseases
like asthma — at 357 locations in the country in 2008. “Particulate matter level in most locations showed an upward trend,” said
pollution control board chairman SP Gautam. The watchdog blamed it on rising
vehicular population, congestion and increasing industrial activity.
Car and two-wheeler sales are increasing at an annual rate of around 15 per cent
but every year, increase in road capacity is of less than one per cent, said
Anumita Roy Chowdhury of the advocacy group Centre for Science and Environment.
“The Ring Road in Delhi was built with a carrying capacity of 75,000 vehicles
during peak hour,” she said. “It now carries over 160,000 vehicles.” The
solution, both Gautam and Chowdhury agreed, lay in switching to public transportation.
Green technology electric car
Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Monday,
the 4th January 2010 inaugurated Twizy Z.E. Concept, a new electric car from the stables of Renault, which will be out on Indian roads by 2011. The blue and white
two- seater works on the green technology principle. Welcoming Renault’s new car, Ms. Dikshit said Delhi roads would be better off with electric cars like this one. Renault India general manager Marc Nassif spoke about his company’s commitment to green technology.
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Air monitoring stations
With Delhi fast becoming the most polluted city in South Asia, the Central Pollution Control Board has decided to install three more air monitoring stations here to update air quality data every 15 minutes. The equipment, costing around Rs 80 lakh each, would be installed at India
Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS) in Dilshad Garden, Netaji Subash Institute of Technology in Dwarka and third one is proposed at Delhi Milk Scheme in Patel Nagar, all highly polluted areas.
"The continuous pollution monitoring devices are being set up in the new three locations witnessing sudden spurt in population, unmonitored industrial areas as well sharp growth in vehicular and human population in these areas," said the CPCB Director Mr S D
Makhijani. The new systems to be installed by the Board inaugurated on June 5,
2008 on the occasion of World Environment Day. Presently four continuous air quality stations are functioning from Siri Fort, ITO, Delhi College of
Engineering in Rohini and through a mobile van that is stationed as per need. |
The air pollution in Delhi is also
due to near by industrial smoke. A permanent haze of cement dust hanging over the air
due to the construction of malls and high-rises. |
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Gurgaon,
the suburb of Delhi has long been celebrated as a shining example of a vibrant, flourishing,
21st- century India. But last month it presented itself as a showcase of the grave environmental crisis that stares India in the face. Residents of this Delhi suburb, faced with crippling power
and water shortages, disappearing green cover, and a permanent haze of cement dust hanging over the air
due to the frenzied construction of malls and high-rises, were compelled to petition the Supreme Court in May. They urged the court to save Gurgaon from complete disaster" and put an end to its unplanned development, which had made their lives untenable "financially, environmentally and mentally".
Growing middle-class concern about the fast deteriorating state of our environment is not restricted to Gurgaon alone, it’s reflected in our nationwide survey too, where people rated environmental pollution second to inflation in the list of problems they face living in
cities such as our Delhi.
Noise
pollution
The flyovers of Delhi have turned into giant vuvuzelas, blowing vehicular noise double the prescribed limits into the ears of
people even six- seven floors above the ground. A study conducted by the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) blames
the hundred- odd flyovers that have mushroomed in the city in recent
years for turning up the noise pollution levels in the capital.
People living near airports, highways, and railroads are majorly
exposed to noise pollution. They are disturbed by the noise and it has
been evident that they remain stressed by the noise and, in turn, experience physiological problems,Everyday noise exposure over time has an impact upon our ability to
hear and on the degree of hearing loss that develops.
Drinking water pollution
Till now, the polluted drinking water have been found in groundwater and tap water. Water in bottles and canisters have for long
offered the middle class the only option for clean drinking water. But
it appears even these are not as pure as they claim. While the Central Pollution Control Board does routine checks on
groundwater and river water, a one-off study of bottled mineral water in
Delhi reveals that the so-called pure water has significant levels of
pollutants, notably coliform (faecal matter), a major pollutant in the Yamuna, despite claims to the contrary.
The study took samples from five major mineral water brands. It revealed
that most of these brands had levels of boron and iron exceeding safe
limits. But what is more worrying is the presence of coliform (bacteria) matter in the water. In fact, all brands had excess levels of
coliform, and in some cases there were traces of coliform from human faecal matter, the kind of pollutant found in sewage water.
Commonwealth Games 2010
On the occasion of the World
Environment Day 2010, the Organising Committee
Commonwealth
Games 2010 Delhi along with the Department of Environment,
GNCTD, organised a Sustainable Transport Rally which included bicycles, electric cars and electric bikes.
The Organising Committee Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi released the Green Games monthly e-newsletter and the Department of Environment,
GNCTD, also released its 2010 State of the Environment Report.
A little more than four months before the Indian capital hosts the Commonwealth
Games, the state government is considering drastic pollution-reduction measures,
including a congestion tax, traffic restrictions, shop closures and a moratorium
on all construction in the weeks leading up to the October event.
An analysis of the city's air quality this week by India's Centre for Science
and Environment warned that pollution levels - high throughout the year - were
likely to increase around the time that more than 8000 athletes converged on Delhi. |
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