Noida Air Pollution Hotspot: Daily traffic jams in busy areas, pothole-filled roads, dust clouds with every passing vehicle, construction and demolition activities turn Noida into a gas chamber every winter. Every year, the national capital Delhi faces more pollution problems and the air in Noida also reaches bad levels, but this time Noida seems to be ahead in this. To reduce air pollution, the UP Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) has prepared an action plan and identified 10 hotspots in the city.

This time these areas were included in pollution hotspots

Utsav Sharma, regional officer of UPPCB Noida, told the Times of India that the list of pollution hotspots has been prepared after several field surveys. Three new areas have been added to last year's list, around which construction activities are going on. This time Noida Sector 151-158, Sector 50-51 and Sector 140-143 have been included in the pollution hotspots.

The air is poisonous in these areas too

Other main centres of pollution are Yamuna Pushta, Sector 116/115/7X, Noida Expressway, Dadri Road, Sector 62-104 stretch, Sector 62 Road towards Delhi and area around Amity University. Utsav Sharma said, 'Construction works, road dust and traffic dust have been identified as the major reasons for the increase in PM10 and PM2.5 levels in the area. Therefore, the Noida Authority has also been asked to repair damaged roads, which is a major reason for this.'

Action plan for pollution control

These instructions were issued after the Commission for Air Quality Management released a revised Graded Response Action Plan on September 17. Last week, the DM directed 31 departments—the Noida Authority, traffic police, irrigation department, pollution department and mining department—to implement these measures. For instance, officials have been directed to increase patrolling on Yamuna Pushta Road, stop unauthorised mining and interstate transport of construction material and install anti-smog guns at authorised mining sites.

In Sector 116/115/7x, Noida Expressway, Dadri Road and Sector 62-104 section, the Noida Authority has been directed to start water sprinkling and mechanical sweeping. The traffic police has been directed to deploy additional manpower to manage traffic on the expressway and other busy sections. For Sector 150-158, the authority has been directed to prepare an SOP for weekly road washing and dust removal. They also have to ensure that dust suppressants are used on roads and construction and demolition waste is properly managed.