ANNOUNCEMENTS
Lucknow: The School of Management Sciences (SMS), Lucknow, organised a two-day national conference focusing on sustainable business approaches for a collective future.
At the collaborative event with the Indian Society for Training & Development (ISTD) and the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) , institute director Ashish Bhatnagar said, "Sustainability is not an option, it is a necessity."
Speakers, including former chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh R Ramani, former director of IIM Kozhikode Krishna Kumar, and TERI SAS New Delhi Associate Professor, Shruti Sharma Rana, led discussions on sustainable finance, circular economy, and ESG practices. TNN
Read MoreProminent environmental experts have challenged the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) report declaring Triveni Sangam water unfit for bathing during the Mahakumbh. The experts argue CPCB report is incomplete citing missing data on nitrates and phosphates.
New Delhi: Prominent environment experts have countered Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report claiming poor quality of water at Mahakumbh. The CPCB report said that Triveni Sangam water is not fit for bathing. The CPCB cites high levels of biological oxygen demand (BOD) in the water.
Prof Umesh Kumar Singh, who teaches at Centre of Environmental Science at the University of Allahabad, said that water at Sangam is fit for taking a bath keeping in view the current set of data.
‘CPCB needs to work more’
“A few days back, the Centre Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report stated increased levels of faecal coliform (bacteria) in the water. I believe that the CPCB needs to work more on the report because their data is not complete,” Professor Singh said. “The level of nitrates and phosphates are missing from the report. The level of dissolved oxygen in the water, as shown in the report, is good. And on the basis of the current data, I can say that the water at Triveni Sangam is fit for taking a bath,” Professor Umesh Singh told ANI.
“Report very inconsistent”
Similarly, another professor RK Ranjan termed CPCB report “very inconsistent”. According to RK Ranjan, who is Associate Professor Central University of South Bihar, the Central Pollution Control Board data is very inconsistent and to conclude that water is unsafe to bathe in would be to say things in haste.
He added, “There is not enough data to conclude that the waters in Prayagraj are not safe to bathe in. Similar data can be seen from Garhmukteshwar, Gazipur, Buxar and Patna. There could be many reasons for this to happen. Among others one reason behind this is when a large number of people bathe in the same waters. It also matters from where and when the sample of water is taken.”
“Coliform bacteria is nothing new”
Dr. Amit Kumar Mishra, another environmental scientist from JNU, also holds the same opinion. Mishra says the presence of coliform bacteria is nothing new and called for new data set.
I would say we need more data sets, we need more measurements. There is a huge number of population which is taking bath at Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. If you talk about the coliform bacteria, it is nothing new. If you see the data of the Shashi Snan peaks, you will see that the E.Coli bacteria peaks at that time. So, I would say that we need more data sets, we need more parameters, we need more monitoring stations, especially down the stream,” Amit Kumar Mishra said.
Prof. Chander Kumar Singh of TERI School of Advanced Studies also said that many parameters are not present in the CPBC report.
“In the CPCB report available, many parameters are not present. I believe better information can be given if more data and facts come out,” Prof. Chander argued.
https://x.com/ANI/status/1892903056926486548
Date | News Title | Source |
25-March-2025 | How water green credits can fu... | Hindustan Times (Opinion) |
23-February-2025 | Sustainable biz practices disc... | The Times of India (Online) |
21-February-2025 | Sangam fit for bath’, Enviro... | News9 (Online) |
12-February-2025 | A role for India in South-Sout... | The Hindu (Online) |
02-December-2024 | ICAR Findings Show 34% Decline... | ETV Bharat (Online) |
28-October-2024 | German Vice Chancellor Dr. Hab... | Indian Chemical News (Online) |
14-October-2024 | Climate action is the hot new ... | The Print (Online) |
04-October-2024 | Turning carbon into opportunit... | Deccan Herald (Online) |
25-September-2024 | University of Leeds and TERI S... | APN News (Online) |
08-August-2024 | Teaching climate change: Globa... | Careers360 (Online) |
The lung function tests conducted during the study revealed that the majority of respondents (39% sweepers, 33% vehicle drivers and 27% street vendors) had limited lung function.
Health conditions of outdoor workers were also found to deteriorate because of extreme temperatures in both summer and winter, the IIT study found.(HT Photo)
Prolonged exposure to extreme temperatures and high pollution severely impacts people’s health in the national capital, a study led by scientists from the Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati has found.
People who have to work outdoors for long periods in Delhi complained of health complications, including breathing difficulties or acute lung function impairment, irregular heartbeat and chest discomfort, back, shoulder, and joint pains, eye redness and irritation, skin rashes, headaches, and overall weakness, said the study — Health impact assessment of Delhi’s outdoor workers exposed to air pollution and extreme weather events: an integrated epidemiology approach — released on Saturday.
“Over the years, air pollution in Delhi has become a significant concern. The city’s geographical location renders it particularly vulnerable to air pollution events such as smog, as well as harsh weather conditions in both summer and winter,” said co-author Suresh Jain, professor at IIT Tirupati. “Outdoor workers are among the hardest hit in such scenarios.”
Other authors of the study included Vaishnavi Barthwal, Ayushi Babuta and Chubamenla Jamir from TERI School of Advanced Studies, Dr Arun Kumar Sharma from the University College of Medical Sciences, Delhi University, and Dr Anant Mohan from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
Researchers surveyed 283 people for the study, which included auto-rickshaw drivers, street vendors and sweepers, who have to spend the most part of their day outdoors and are constantly exposed to pollution, Jain said. The study also took into account the impact of factors such as age and smoking on lung impairment among the participants so that the actual impacts of high pollution and extreme weather conditions can be analysed better.
As much as 47% of the auto-rickshaw drivers, 47% of street vendors and 48% of sweepers reported major health impacts of prolonged exposure to outdoor pollution levels, the study found. Auto-rickshaw drivers reported the highest incidence of vision related symptoms such as redness of the eye (44%) and eye irritation (36%), while most street vendors reported headaches (43%). This could be attributed to constant exposure to vehicular pollution, the researchers said.
The lung function tests conducted during the study revealed that the majority of respondents (39% sweepers, 33% vehicle drivers and 27% street vendors) had limited lung function.
Sweepers had a higher rate of lung impairment than the other occupational groups due to the nature of their work, which involved frequent exposure to dust and particulate matter, Jain explained. “Dust inhalation during sweeping caused immediate lung function impairment and raised the risk of pulmonary disease progression. The risk increased as the period of exposure increased,” he said.
The findings of the study are important because Delhi is known to record high pollution levels, which worsens during the winter time when the air quality index in the national capital peaks several times higher than the healthy limit.
Toxic air pollution in Delhi cuts people’s lives short by roughly 10 years, making it India’s biggest threat to human health, according to the latest Air Quality Life Index report released in June 2022. Child and maternal malnutrition, in comparison, reduces average life expectancy by 1.8 years, while smoking reduces life expectancy by 1.5 years.
Health conditions of outdoor workers were also found to deteriorate because of extreme temperatures in both summer and winter, the IIT study found.
The majority of these symptoms were common among vendors (75% reported headache and giddiness, 36% rapid heartbeat, and 20% experienced fainting spells), followed by sweepers (60% had headaches, 34% had palpitations and 15% experienced fainting spells), and auto-rickshaw drivers (54% experienced headaches, 27% reported rapid heartbeats and 5% complained of fainting spells).
“We concluded that while personal habits and influencing variables such as age, smoking, tobacco use, pre-existing health disorders, and a lack of usage of acceptable safety measures might raise these workers’ sensitivity to occupational health risks, lack of proper mitigation measures and policies, long working hours, and varying work locations exacerbate their exposure to air pollution and harsh conditions,” said Jain.
Outdoor workers and people who were forced to spend long hours outside were at a greater risk of health problems owing to constant exposure to extreme weather conditions and high temperatures, other experts concurred.
“Poor people are definitely more vulnerable to the impacts of high pollution and extreme temperatures. The more your body is exposed to the toxic pollutants and very high or low temperatures, the sooner it will start showing visible health problems,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment, an advocacy group. “That is why we keep stressing that government strategies should focus on the most vulnerable.”
Plot No. 10, Institutional Area, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi - 110 070, India.
Tel. +91 11 71800222 (25 lines).
Website : www.terisas.ac.in
Email id : registrar@terisas.ac.in
© Copyright © 2025, TERI SAS, All rights reserved.
Visitors No.: 26191792 Since 2023