From vehicles to electricity, here’s what is poisoning Agra’s air

Why is the city of Taj so polluted? India Today spoke to experts, here is what they had to say.

Thousands of domestic and foreign tourists visit the cities of Agra, Mathura and Vrindavan and marvel at the sights and landmarks they have to offer. Another thing that takes them by surprise -- albeit an unpleasant one -- is the high level of pollution in these cities.

A foreign tourist visiting Agra told India Today that they noticed a marked difference in the air quality around the Taj Mahal, where automobiles are prohibited, and that of the rest of the city. This indicates that vehicular traffic is one of the major contributors to air pollution in the city.

Aryan Gupta, an Agra resident and a researcher at Dayalbagh Deemed University, said that 15.54 kilotons of pollutants are released into the air in the city every day. At 50 per cent, the energy sector has the highest contribution to pollution.

READ | Yamuna’s condition worsens in Agra due to high pollution despite heavy rain

Aryan stated that 8.87 kilotons of pollutants are emitted daily from the electricity consumed in Agra. The effect of pollution caused by coal etc. to generate electricity is being felt across the whole country. Aryan Gupta has done his research under the guidance of Dr Ranjit Kumar.

Responding to a question, Dr Ranjit Kumar said that the lack of awareness about various sources of pollution and health problems has led to the deterioration of air quality. The major sources of air pollution are found to be energy, transportation, agricultural waste, household, and industry. Therefore, there is a need to run air pollution control programmes to mitigate the problem.

Vishal Sharma, secretary of the Agra Tourist Welfare Chamber, said that the elements that are poisoning the city of Taj’s air include particulate matter (PM-10, PM-2.5), carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide.