Air quality monitoring will significantly expand in the national capital before next winter, with the city government setting October as the deadline to set up 20 new pollution observatories.
The Environment Department today announced it will complete the tendering process by April and open the stations by October.
Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), that works under the department, operates six monitoring stations presently.
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The new stations will monitor eight parameters: ultrafine particulates PM 2.5, PM 10 and SO2, NO2, CO, Benzene, Ammonia and Ozone, similar to the existing ones.
The consultancy wing of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) will be working as a bid manager in executing the project, a government official said, following a meeting where Environment Minister Imran Hussain reviewed the progress of work on this front.
"The minister was informed that the new stations will be operational by October. He instructed officials to expedite the matter for the timely completion of the project," the official said.
PM 2.5 and PM 10 are microscopic particles, multiple times smaller than the average width of a human hair. They can damage the respiratory system and also enter the bloodstream causing further complications.
Apart from DPCC, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) runs 10, although there are overlaps in terms of locations, and SAFAR, that falls under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, operates another eight stations in the city.
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