Real Time Source Appropriation Study of air Pollution by Delhi Govt

Last updated: 17 Oct 2024

"Until we find the sources of pollution on a real-time basis, we cannot frame an effective policy on the issue" - Arvind Kejriwal[1]

30 January 2023: Arvind Kejriwal unveiled a critical scientific study and a comprehensive set up (including Supersite, Mobile Van & Raasman.com website) to identify, record, share & forecast the sources of air pollution in real time[2]

Budget 2023-24: Now Real-time pollution data labs will be set up in each district[3]

Delhi has become the first city to identify the source of air pollution in real time[4]

The study is being conducted by various institutes, including IIT Kanpur, IIT Delhi and The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) for Delhi Govt[1:1]

Another Blockage by BJP: This Reseach Lab has been stopped since Oct 2023 under the influence of BJP appointee LG, without Delhi AAP Miniter's consultation[3:1]

Necessity & Struggle

In CM Kejriwal's words, “Until now (to understand the sources of air pollution), we had relied upon studies conducted as one-off analyses. The issue with such an approach was that we frame policies based on limited data"[1:2]

Prior to this, Delhi had experimented with this concept thrice but came out with unsatisfactory results[2:1]

  • The first source apportionment study was conducted by IIT-Kanpur in 2016-17[2:2]
  • Then by The Energy Resources Institute (TERI) in 2017-18 [2:3]
  • The state government then asked the Washington University in 2019 to carry out the study. However, it was scrapped in 2020, with the government saying the study was “unsatisfactory”[2:4]

Implementation - The Real-time Source Apportionment Study

  • The project is to identify, record & share the sources of air pollution in real time and then use the data for forcating of Pollution levels[2:5]
  • Weekly, monthly, and seasonal interpretation of air quality will take place[4:1]

A Supersite

  • This site has state-of-the-art air analysers & set up in Delhi's Rouse Avenue on Sarvodaya Bal Vidalaya premises[5]

Mobile Van

  • A setup similar to the Supersite is also replicated within a van to gather real time data at any remote location[5:1]
  • Mobile air quality monitoring vans are set up at 13 hotspots in Delhi to ascertain the contribution of different pollution sources in real-time[6]

R-AASMAN Portal

  • Delhi Pollution Control Board runs RAASMAN.com that provides public with real time source apportionment data

26-27 Sept 2023 Data

Results[7]

CM Kejriwal said of the total pollution in Delhi
-- Outside sources caused as much as 35%
-- Biomass burning was responsible for 26%
-- Vehicles were responsible for 35%

References:

  1. https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/kejriwal-launches-website-showing-real-time-data-on-sources-of-air-pollution/article66451275.ece/amp/ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  2. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/delhi-news/kejriwal-unveils-study-devices-to-help-combat-air-pollution-in-delhi-101675104001475.html ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  3. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/delhi-news/pollution-body-halted-key-study-says-delhi-govt-101698259434696.html ↩︎ ↩︎

  4. https://www.thestatesman.com/cities/delhi/delhi-govt-speeds-project-real-time-source-apportionment-system-1503073722.html ↩︎ ↩︎

  5. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/delhi-government-to-launch-mechanism-to-collect-real-time-pollution-data/articleshow/97424076.cms?from=mdr ↩︎ ↩︎

  6. https://www.outlookindia.com/national/real-time-pollution-data-lab-to-come-up-in-every-district-in-delhi-news-272183 ↩︎

  7. https://www.indiatoday.in/cities/delhi/story/delhi-cm-arvind-kejriwal-inaugurats-real-time-source-apportionment-tackle-pollution-2328454-2023-01-31 ↩︎