It was a quieter Deepavali with lower pollution this time

Noise levels register a marginal dip in comparison to 2019

People seen bursting crackers as part of Deepavali celebrations in Hyderabad on Saturday.

It was a quieter Deepavali with lower pollution in comparison to last year, according to the data shared by Telangana State Pollution Control Board.

Based on its ambient air quality monitoring stations, the TSPCB revealed that the PM 2.5 or superfine suspended particulate matter level reached 64 ug/m3 and PM 10 levels touched 128 ug/m3.

Both the values were marginally above the permissible national ambient air quality standards. In contrast, the PM 2.5 levels had reached 72 ug/m3 and PM 10 value had touched 163.4 ug/m3 during the Deepavali of 2019. The special AAQ monitoring is being done from November 7 till 21 in line with the Central Pollution Control Board directions.

The noise levels due to crackers also registered a marginal dip in comparison to 2019 Deepavali, just breaching the permissible standards.

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In areas categorised as sensitive, the Db levels was 42 (standard 40) while in commercial areas it was 70 (standard 55). While the TSPCB numbers suggest it was a less noisy Deepavali with lower pollution, the numbers are averaged for 24 hours including night time and day time when pollution levels dip due to lower human activity.

At 10.30 p.m. on Deepavali night, the monitoring station at Sanathnagar recorded PM 2.5 at 574 ug/m3 matching the pollution levels in parts of north India. It was nearly 10 times the ambient air quality standard of 40-60 ug/m3 set by the Central Pollution Control Board. By 11 p.m., the PM2.5 levels dipped to 366 ug/m3.

Short-term exposure to PM2.5 has been linked to higher mortality.