54% of Delhi’s industrial units monitored online breach emission norms
Nearly half of Delhi's industrial units, monitored online, have violated emission standards, as revealed by The Indian Express. Of the 87 Online Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (OCEMS) installed, 39 were offline as of Saturday, with at least 26 of the remaining 48 exceeding permissible limits. The findings coincide with Delhi's 'Very Poor' Air Quality Index (AQI) of 369 on Saturday, prior to Diwali, with several areas surpassing 400.
The Air Quality Early Warning System predicts 'severe' air quality on November 8 and 9. Industrial emissions contribute significantly to Delhi's air pollution, with a 2018 study estimating up to 26% of the annual load. Delhi has 30,672 industrial units, 128 of which are highly-polluting and require OCEMS. However, only 87 have installed them.
Several industries cite financial difficulties, citing the impact of the West Asia conflict and rising raw material costs. The CAQM has directed industries to operationalize OCEMS by November 30. Among the 16 operational units in Delhi's metal industries, nine have been flagged for exceeding emission limits. Badli, New Mandoli, Narela, and Mayapuri are major pollution hotspots.
PM is the most common pollutant exceeding limits, with 24 of the 26 flagged units breaching PM limits.
Written by urgent.news from The Indian Express's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
