City coughs, sputters, as Bhogi fires burn; 4 stations record poor air quality

Residents successful assorted parts of the metropolis experienced trouble owed to the lighting of bonfires for Bhogi connected Wednesday.

Rani, a nonmigratory of Kannagi Nagar said she woke up by 4.30 a.m. and saw galore bonfires. “I didn’t privation to commencement a caller 1 truthful added a portion of aged cloth to the 1 closest to my home. The fume was heavy till astir 7 a.m.,” she said.

Chitradevi, a nonmigratory of Kandanchavadi, said that erstwhile she opened the doorway astatine 6.30 a.m., the fume from the corridor entered her home. “I recovered it hard to breathe. My eyes were watery,” she said.

TNPCB information showed that successful the 24 hours ending 8 a.m. connected Tuesday, 4 stations retired of 15, registered mediocre aerial quality. Tondiarpet had an aerial prime scale (AQI) worth of 267, Royapuram, 243, Valasaravakkam, 207, and Thoraipakkam, 273. Tiruvottiyur had the cleanest aerial successful the metropolis with an AQI of 140, possibly owed to radical similar P. Parthiban, an autorickshaw driver, who said his household did not person the wont of burning waste. “As we already pollute the aerial with conveyance emissions. Why should we adhd to it by burning waste?”

S.M. Shiva Nagendra, professor, IIT Madras, said that since burning of discarded for Bhogi was a sentiment for many, places specified arsenic Singapore person systems for controlled burning of discarded connected specified days successful circumstantial locations. “Chennai excessively should person assemblage burning stations with controlled emissions astatine the ward level,” helium added.