‘Immediate aim for cities like Bengaluru is to achieve national standards in air pollution’
The Hindu
Experts say India should start making progress towards WHO interim targets
As the World Health Organization (WHO) updated its air quality guidelines for the first time in 15 years, it has been evident that the new targets are a far reach for countries such as India, where many cities like Bengaluru are yet to achieve national standards.
But experts in the field have highlighted the urgency in attaining them, pointing out that air pollution at any level is unsafe.
According to the new guidelines the annual PM2.5 mean has been updated to 5 g/m3 as against 10g/m3 in 2005. The annual mean for PM10 is updated from 20 g/m3 to 15 g/m3 and NO2 to 10 g/m3 from 40 g/m3.
The election authorities are gearing up for the counting of votes cast in the simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on June 4. The Collectors and Election Officers of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) districts said on May 23 (Thursday) that their teams were ready for the counting of votes.
Responding to the prolonged water scarcity, the residents of the area took to the streets in protest on Wednesday. The protest, which drew attention to their plight, stopped only after the intervention of the police. It was not until 1.30 p.m. that a 4000-litre tanker was finally delivered by BWSSB, providing relief to the water-starved residents.