Bhubaneswar: The sale and use of charcoal, a popular cooking fuel for a majority of roadside eateries, will be completely prohibited in Bhubaneswar from today (Thursday). The decision to this effect was taken at a preparatory meeting of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) to review the air quality index and pollution levels in the city. Commissioner Vijay Amruta Kulange, who Monday attended the meeting chaired by Mayor Sulochana Das and attended by representatives from Industries, Forest and Transport departments in the run-up to the ‘International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies’, said the move is in addition to the Rs 10,000 fine the civic body had earlier announced to discourage the burning of garbage in public. “We have set a target to bring down the PM10 level to below 60mg/m3 within a year. Steps are also being taken to reduce the level of PM 2.5, another major pollutant in the air in the City,” Kulange said, adding, “We have already asked sanitation inspectors at ward-level to impose penalty against those found burning waste in their respective jurisdiction.” Several data suggest that the number of vehicles is increasing rapidly in Bhubaneswar. In fact, the number of registered vehicles in the Capital city has outnumbered the City’s population. One of the main concerns from this is the release of greenhouse gases from fossilfuel based vehicles.
In recent times the air quality index (AQI) in the Capital City with prominent pollutant PM10 has been found to be deteriorating as the ambient air quality data of Bhubaneswar recorded by the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) had revealed. Besides, the heat index prepared by the BMC with the help of Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) had also found that nearly two dozen wards in the state capital are prone to severe heat conditions due to burning of garbage and other waste and thus fall in the red category which is for Industrial Sectors having Pollution Index score of 60 and above. The theme for the fourth annual ‘International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies (September 7) is “Together for Clean Air”, highlights the urgent need for stronger partnerships, increased investment, and share responsibility for overcoming air pollution.
Meanwhile, environment activist Dillip Srichandan said to avoid pollution in Bhubaneswar, it is necessary to purify the exhaust gases of factories. “Also we must ensure that dust particles do not come out during construction works. We must also pay attention to the restriction on burning of poisonous firecrackers during the festive season, and, above all, try to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by planting large trees.” Environmentalist JK Panigrahi said, “As the human civilisation is advancing, the impacts of developmental activities and exploding human population are causing greater stress on nature and environment. Enhanced pollution is engendering greater health problems and disease occurrence. We need to identify all the point and non-point sources of air pollution so as to devise well-planned mechanisms for addressing these root causes and reducing the load of pollution.
Strict implementation of the existing pollution prevention and control rules by the local administration also holds the key to the pollution regulation efforts.” To address the issue of vehicular pollution, the state government has started promoting sale of electric vehicles (EVs). The government recently issued notification regarding amendment of Odisha Electric Vehicle Policy, 2021. Through this amendment, the government has increased the subsidy on the purchase of two-wheeler, three-wheeler and four-wheeler electric vehicles (EVs). Environmentalist Ranjan Panda said Bhubaneswar’s air quality has come under the ‘nonattainable’ category as per recent surveys. “This means the city’s traffic is getting worse, and green spaces are shrinking. While awareness is necessary, a roadmap to decongest roads, phase out fossil fuel based vehicles, and increase urban forest cover is need of the hour,” he said.