Air quality dips to 'severe' in Noida, Ghaziabad, stays 'very poor' in Faridabad, Gurgaon
Noida (UP): The air quality in Ghaziabad and Noida deteriorated to the 'severe' category and remained "very poor" in Greater Noida, Faridabad, and Gurgaon of the National Capital Region (NCR) on Saturday, according to a government agency.
The concentration of major air pollutants PM 2.5 and PM 10 remained high in the five immediate neighbors of Delhi, according to the air quality index (AQI) maintained by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
According to the index, an AQI between zero 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 average 24-hour AQI till 4 pm on Saturday was 456 in Ghaziabad, 425 in Noida, 394 in Greater Noida, 378 in Faridabad, and 358 in Gurgaon, according to the CPCB's Sameer app.
On Friday it was 382 in Ghaziabad, 337 in Noida, 336 in Greater Noida, 324 in Gurgaon, and 319 in Faridabad. On Thursday it was 328 in Ghaziabad, 327 in Greater Noida, 305 in Noida, 304 in Faridabad, and 293 in Gurgaon.
PM 2.5 and PM 10 were the prominent pollutants in Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, and Gurgaon on Saturday, according to the CPCB.
It states that an AQI in the 'very poor' category may cause respiratory illness on prolonged exposure, while 'severe' air quality affects even healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing diseases.
The AQI for each city is based on the average value of all stations there.
Noida, Faridabad, Ghaziabad have four stations each, while Gurgaon has three and Greater Noida two, according to the app.
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4 workers die after being buried under coal slurry in Jharkhand's Dhanbad
Dhanbad (Jharkhand) (PTI): At least four workers died after being buried under coal slurry in Jharkhand's Dhanbad district on Saturday, a police official said.
The incident took place at Moonidih coal washery in the command area of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL).
"Bodies of all four workers were dug out of debris during a rescue operation," Putki police station in-charge Waqar Hussain told PTI.
The incident took place when coal slurry was being loaded into trucks by workers, during which a large chunk of slurry fell and trapped several workers underneath, officials said.
The deceased have been identified as Manik Bauri, Dinesh Bauri, Deepak Bauri, and Hemlal Gope.
Meanwhile, the family members of the deceased and local villagers placed the bodies in front of the washery gate and began a protest.
They demanded compensation, jobs for dependents and action against those responsible for the incident.
Police and administration officials are trying to pacify the protesters, an official said.
