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
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Experts said the air quality may improve as the dense plumes of smoke visible in satellite images of Delhi-NCR have reduced considerably over the weekend
The air quality in Gurugram worsened on Sunday, though it remained in the ‘very poor’ category. The city recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 364 on Sunday against 345 a day earlier, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Experts, however, said that the situation is likely to improve in the coming days as the dense plumes of smoke, which were visible in satellite images of Delhi-NCR a few days ago, have reduced considerably through Saturday and Sunday.
According to the CPCB, the air quality in Gurugram remained in the ‘very poor’ category with heavy accumulation of particulate matter in the air for the seventh consecutive day on Sunday.
At the four air quality monitoring stations in Gurugram, the AQI recorded at Teri Gram was 375, 374 at Vikas Sadan, 362 at Sector 51 and 343 at Gwal Pahari.
According to the CPCB guidelines, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 ‘severe’.
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted stronger winds in coming days and said that it will be favourable for better dispersion of pollutants as the air quality is likely to improve to the ‘poor’ and ‘moderate’ category on Monday and Tuesday (November 22 and 23).
“Predominant surface winds are likely to come to the city from the northwest direction of Delhi with a wind speed 12-20 kilometre per hour (kmph) and strong surface winds with a speed of 20-30 kmph during Monday,” said the IMD, adding that the city may see a clear sky and experience mist on Monday and Tuesday mornings.
On Sunday, the IMD recorded the maximum and minimum temperatures in Gurugram at 24.4 degrees Celsius (°C) and 10.6°C, respectively.
Dr Anurani Sharma, associate professor of Teri School of Advanced Studies, said, “The wind speed in the coming days is likely to be more than 10kmph, which will improve things... as compared to the average wind speed of 2kmph on Saturday. Satellite images are also showing relatively less plumes over this region now.”
Dr Sachin Pawar, a Gurugram-based air quality specialist, said that there is a dip in the temperature as the pollutants closer to the ground are not getting dispersed.
“There will be a constant drop in the temperatures as winter is coming, and this will ensure that pollutants don’t get dispersed. Pollution levels are likely to remain high for the next 10 days,” said Pawar.
An official of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), requesting anonymity, said that the pollutants are likely to disperse over the region, which will help in improving the air quality, as the wind speed is picking up. A strict watch is being kept in all the areas, he added.
