CSIR body to Install pollution-alert system

To warn people about pollution hotspots, the National Institute of Science Technology and Development Studies (NISTADS) — the policy arm of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research — is ironing out a project to install pollution sensors at Delhi’s traffic junctions.

The aim, said NISTADS director Prashant Goswami, was to develop a messaging-alert system that would warn people about spikes in pollution in certain localities.

For over a year, NISTADS researchers have been running a test project that involved a pollution monitoring unit, affixed on a van, going around specific localities in Delhi and continuously recording the waxing and waning of particulate matter through the day. Generally pollution levels tended to be higher in the morning and ebb as the sun ascended.

“Along with our own data, we’ve also analysed pollution data collected by the Central Pollution Control Board,” said Mr. Goswami. “However, there isn’t any information on how pollution levels changed throughout the day. That’s what we hope to conceive as a service.”

NISTADS expects private companies to buy into the idea, tap the CSIR body’s database and offer this as a product akin to how, for instance, Google Maps warns users of an impending roadblock. The process of data collection is still on and NISTADS is also looking to develop a prototype of pollution-sensor that can be easily affixed atop traffic stations.

Recently the Delhi government and the Union environment ministry joined hands for a ‘Clean Air for Delhi’ campaign which saw nearly 7,000 environmental violations and about 3,000 challans issued for a range of infractions, ranging from open burning of waste, construction and road dust violations, vehicular pollution, and 635 cases of traffic congestion.(Source:The Hindu)