A day after Diwali, air quality 'poor' in Kolkata, neighbourhood
Kolkata (PTI): Air quality remained 'poor' in Kolkata and its neighbourhood on Monday morning, a day after Kali Puja and Diwali, as a haze engulfed the metropolis, officials said.
Such a situation was not only caused by the bursting of firecrackers on Sunday, but also due to weather conditions during this time of the year when small particulate matters remain in the air with the presence of fog and smoke, they said.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) reading was 284 at Victoria Memorial and 262 at Fort William in Kolkata, while it was 310 in Ghusuri in neighbouring Howrah district on Monday morning, West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) data showed.
An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe', the officials said.
The control room at Paribesh Bhavan, the headquarters WBPCB was functioning till late in the night on Sunday, while drone surveillance and mobile teams were also in operation at various hotspots in the city and adjacent areas, they said.
Environmentalist Naba Dutta said the pollution levels shot up after sunset on Sunday, as celebrations with fireworks began in different parts of the city. "If the pollution levels aggravate, it will cause respiratory problems," he cautioned.
"We recommend sprinkling water on plants in the evening to reduce the effect of pollution," another green activist Somendra Mohan Ghosh said.
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BJP has history of ‘contradictory alliances’, says BK Hariprasad
Bengaluru: Congress MLC B. K. Hariprasad has launched a sharp attack on the BJP, accusing the party of hypocrisy over its criticism of alliance politics in Tamil Nadu.
In a post on X on Friday, Hariprasad said BJP leader B. L. Santhosh criticising the Congress party’s alliance politics in Tamil Nadu was “not just laughable, but the height of political contradiction.”
He said the Congress has always joined hands with like-minded parties to protect secular and democratic values in the country.
Hariprasad questioned the BJP over several of its past and present alliances across the country. Referring to Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Tripura, Bihar and Maharashtra, he accused the BJP of sharing power with parties it had earlier criticised.
He alleged that the BJP had aligned with separatist and corruption-linked political forces in different states for political gains.
“The BJP, which speaks against alliances today, should first look at its own political history,” he said, adding that the party’s record was full of “contradictions and changing stands.”
Hariprasad also accused the BJP of using central agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax Department and CBI as political tools to target opposition leaders, topple governments and influence electoral mandates.
He further claimed that the people of Tamil Nadu had strongly rejected the BJP and its ideology in the recent election.
“Congress forms alliances to protect the Constitution, secularism and national unity, while the BJP enters into alliances only for power,” he said.
