Details:

• The levels of PM 2.5, the most threatening of particulate matter, worsened in 43 of 99 cities whose winter air in 2020 and 2019 was compared by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a non-governmental research organization.
• Only 19 registered “substantial improvement” — one of these was Chennai. The rest of the cities did not experience significant change.
• In the aftermath of the lockdown, several cities reported improved pollution levels but by winter, when the restrictions were significantly eased, pollution levels had clawed back to pre-COVID-19 levels.
• The cities with the worst pollution spikes in 2020 over 2019 include Gurugram, Lucknow, Jaipur, Visakhapatnam, Agra, Navi Mumbai, and Jodhpur. Kolkata is the only mega city in this group.
• During winter, cool and calm weather traps and spikes daily pollution, particularly in north Indian cities located in the Indo-Gangetic Plain.
• This year, the average level of PM2.5 during the summer and monsoon months was considerably lower than the previous year due to the summer lockdown.

https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/winter-pollution-on-the-rise-cse/article33928213.ece

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