The West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) has formed seven teams in and around the city on the occasion of Kali Puja and Diwali in order to curb sound and air pollution.
The Supreme Court has specified time limit for bursting crackers from 8-10 pm. There will be seven teams of officials in Kolkata and around the city, checking the 90-decibel sound limit and to control the bursting of low emission crackers.
Kalyan Rudra, WBPCB chairman has said that this year the Board has given 180 sound monitoring devices to the police which can be used to check the decibel levels on the spot. He added that his teams will coordinate with the police and the state administration and keep a watch around the high-rises and puja pandals. To make this drive more effective, the officials will work from 5 pm till midnight on both Kali Puja and Diwali.
Rudra added that the board has been measuring air quality in Kolkata for the last seven years and will continue to do so till November 14, during the festival and also afterwards. For this reason, the reports from 17 air quality monitoring stations in Kolkata are being separately arranged to check the change in the air quality before and after the festival. An analysis will be made with the findings to decide on the future course of action.
