Changes in Air Quality, Meteorology and Energy Consumption during the COVID-19 Lockdown and Unlock Periods in India

Abstract

The increasing population and its associated amenities demand innovative devices, infrastructure, methods, plans and policies. Regional climate has a great role in deciding the air quality and energy demand, and therefore, weather and climate have an indisputable role in its consumption and storage. Here, we present the changes in trace gases and associated regional weather in India during lockdown and unlock periods of COVID-19. We observe a reduction of about 30% in sulphur dioxide (SO2) and 10–20% in aerosols in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP), large cities, industrial sites, mining areas and thermal power plants during lockdown as compared to the same period in the previous year and with respect to its climatology. However, a considerable increase in aerosols is found, particularly over IGP during Unlock 1.0 (1–30 June 2020), because of the relaxation of lockdown restrictions. The analyses also show a decrease in temperature by 1–3 °C during lockdown compared to its climatology for the same period, mainly in IGP and Central India, possibly due to the significant reduction in absorbing aerosols such as black carbon and decrease in humidity during the period. The west coast, northwest and central India show reduced wind speed when compared to its previous year and climatological values, suggesting that there was a change in regional weather due to the lockdown. Energy demand in India decreased by about 25–30% during the first phase of lockdown and about 20% during the complete lockdown period. This study thus suggests that the reduction of pollution could also modify local weather, and these results would be useful for drafting policy decisions on air pollution reduction, urban development, the energy sector, agriculture and water resources.