Diwali Day Research Articles

Ambient and Episodic Levels of Metals in PM10 Aerosols and Their Source Apportionment in Central Delhi, India

AbstractThe aim of this study was to assess the levels of metals in particulate matter measuring less than 10 μm (PM10) aerosols in ambient air at a site in central Delhi. A total of seven metals were analyzed in PM10 aerosol samples during the postmonsoon period in 2009. The average levels of metals were estimated in the order K>Zn>Mg>Fe>Mn>Cu>Cd. The study also covered the metal accumulation due to fireworks on Diwali festival. A comparison of ambient levels of metal accumulation with the Diwali period revealed that the festival Diwali is a source of severe air pollution when the levels of metals increased by many folds as compared with normal ambient levels. Significant amounts of metals are emitted into the atmosphere by burning of crackers and sparkles on the Diwali day (DD). The contribution of K was the highest during all DDs with its maximum 88% emission on the main DD. Remarkable increase was noticed for K (9.4 times) and Mg (6.1 times) on the DD over the pre-Diwali normal day, whereas for the pr...

Ambient air quality of Katra town, J&K during fireworks on Diwali festival

Diwali-the festival of lights, is celebrated in India, every year during October or November with great fireworks display which contributes to pollution of air. In order to assess the impacts of fireworks on ambient air quality during Diwali festival in Katra town, Jammu , (J&K); monitoring of RSPM, NRSPM, SO2 and NO2 during day and night times for Pre-Diwali (day before Diwali); Diwali and Post-Diwali (day after Diwali) for two successive years i.e. 2011 and 2012 has been carried out in a residential area. The air quality levels observed on Diwali has been compared with the air quality levels observed before and after Diwali which has revealed considerable increase in RSPM, NRSPM, SO2 and NO2 concentration due to Diwali fireworks. On Diwali day, the concentration of RSPM, NRSPM, TSPM, SO2 and NO2 was found to be 118.27µg/m³, 153.2µg/m³, 271.47µg/m3, 6.61µg/m3 and 10.51µg/m3 respectively in 2011 and 141.2µg/m³, 199.14µg/m³, 340.34µg/m³, 7.06µg/m³ and 10.53µg/m³ respectively in 2012.These concentrations were found to be 1.75, 1.57, 1.65, 1.73 and 1.52 times higher in 2011 and 1.86, 2, 2, 1.47 and 1.39 times higher in 2012, when compared with the respective concentrations of normal day. The higher level of these pollutants due to fireworks during Diwali festival poses serious health hazards to the inhabitants of the area.

Impact of anthropogenic activity and cyclonic storm on black carbon during winter at a tropical urban city, Pune

Black carbon (BC) aerosols are emitted into the atmosphere as a byproduct of different combustion processes and are reported to be a very strong absorber of solar radiation. In this paper, we present results on BC aerosols over Pune, a tropical urban city in south west India during Diwali festival in the month of November 2010. Daily mean BC showed about 5 % increase on Diwali day compared with preceding and succeeding period with concentrations reaching as high as about 21 μg/m3 in the morning on Diwali day, mainly due to the influence of extensive fireworks. However, the strong winds accompanied by occasional rainfall due to severe cyclonic storm “Jal” formed in the Bay of Bengal on the same day dampened this effect and reduced BC to about 2 μg/m3 within 6 h. There was only 5 % increase in mean BC concentration on Diwali day during 2010 as compared to the average increase of about 17 % during preceding 4 years on Diwali day, mainly due to the impact of weather conditions induced by Jal.

Fireworks injuries in children: A prospective study during the festival of lights

We studied the epidemiology of paediatric firework-related injury in the urban population of Delhi during the festival of lights (Diwali). In this prospective observational study, data were collected on the day of Diwali for two consecutive years, 2010 and 2011. All children with firework injuries coming to the emergency room were included in the study. Data were recorded in a predesigned proforma. Of the 65 cases, 75% were males and 25% were females; most children were more than 10 years of age and majority (90%) of them were unsupervised. Half (49%) of the cases were due to misuse of the fireworks or erratic behaviour, among which the most common observed mode was igniting cracker while holding it (18 cases; 24% of total injuries), which led to injuries to the hand and palm. Device failure was the next common cause for firework injuries, including unexpected blast of the crackers and string bomb as the most common. Overall, the most commonly injured body sites were hands (62%), face (32%) and eyes (10%). Crackers and string bomb mainly caused injuries to hands; fountains and gunpowder caused injuries to the face. Sixty (94%) children were managed conservatively and 5 (6%) required skin grafting and tendon repair. We recommend parental supervision especially for males, wearing non-synthetic and non-flowing clothes, promoting branded crackers and educational campaigns in schools to curtail the rising trend in firework-related injuries in the paediatric population.

Noise pollution monitoring during Diwali festival in Golden city Jaisalmer of Rajasthan, India

Noise is an important pollutant of environment causing various health hazards. In the present study, ambient noise levels were measured in two different areas within Jaisalmer city viz., commercial and residential area, on festive day and non-festive day (after) of Diwali. The results of noise level monitoring revealed the fact that due to higher amount of firecrackers on Diwali festival noise level was enhanced. The average equivalent noise level was increased from 61.94 dB to 72 dB (A) and 64.68 dB to 73.74 dB (A) on festive day, respectively, in selected residential and commercial areas, where noise was 30 and 13.44 % higher than standards of Central Pollution Control Board, New Delhi for residential and commercial areas, respectively.

Air Quality Status During Diwali Festival of India: A Case Study

The PM(2.5) and PM(10) samples were collected during Diwali celebration from study area and characterized for ionic concentration of four anions (NO(3) (-), NO(2) (-), Cl(-), SO(4) (2-)) and five cations (K(+), Mg(2+), NH(4) (+), Ca(2+), Na(+)). The results showed that the ionic concentrations were three times compared to those on pre and post Diwali days. Predominant ions for PM(2.5) were K(+) 33.7 μg/m(3), Mg(+) 31.6 μg/m(3), SO(4) (2-) 22.1 μg/m(3), NH(4) (+) 17.5 μg/m(3) and NO(3) (-) 18 μg/m(3) and for PM(10) the ionic concentrations were Mg(+) 29.6 μg/m(3), K(+) 26 μg/m(3), SO(4) (2-) 19.9 μg/m(3), NH(4) (+) 16.8 μg/m(3) and NO(3) (-) 16 μg/m(3). While concentration of SO(2) and NO(2) were 17.23, 70.33 μg/m(3) respectively.

Impact of Diwali celebrations on urban air and noise quality in Delhi City, India

A study was conducted in the residential areas of Delhi, India, to assess the variation in ambient air quality and ambient noise levels during pre-Diwali month (DM), Diwali day (DD) and post-Diwali month during the period 2006 to 2008. The use of fireworks during DD showed 1.3 to 4.0 times increase in concentration of respirable particulate matter (PM(10)) and 1.6 to 2.5 times increase in concentration of total suspended particulate matter (TSP) than the concentration during DM. There was a significant increase in sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) concentration but the concentration of nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) did not show any considerable variation. Ambient noise level were 1.2 to 1.3 times higher than normal day. The study also showed a strong correlation between PM(10) and TSP (R (2) ≥ 0.9) and SO(2) and NO(2) (R (2) ≥ 0.9) on DD. The correlation between noise level and gaseous pollutant were moderate (R (2) ≥ 0.5). The average concentration of the pollutants during DD was found higher in 2007 which could be due to adverse meteorological conditions. The statistical interpretation of data indicated that the celebration of Diwali festival affects the ambient air and noise quality. The study would provide public awareness about the health risks associated with the celebrations of Diwali festival so as to take proper precautions.

Study of temporal variation in ambient air quality during Diwali festival in India

The variation in air quality was assessed from the ambient concentrations of various air pollutants [total suspended particle (TSP), particulate matter < or =10 microm (PM(10)), SO(2), and NO(2)] for pre-Diwali, Diwali festival, post-Diwali, and foggy day (October, November, and December), Delhi (India), from 2002 to 2007. The extensive use of fireworks was found to be related to short-term variation in air quality. During the festival, TSP is almost of the same order as compared to the concentration at an industrial site in Delhi in all the years. However, the concentrations of PM(10), SO(2), and NO(2) increased two to six times during the Diwali period when compared to the data reported for an industrial site. Similar trend was observed when the concentrations of pollutants were compared with values obtained for a typical foggy day each year in December. The levels of these pollutants observed during Diwali were found to be higher due to adverse meteorological conditions, i.e., decrease in 24 h average mixing height, temperature, and wind speed. The trend analysis shows that TSP, PM(10), NO(2), and SO(2) concentration increased just before Diwali and reached to a maximum concentration on the day of the festival. The values gradually decreased after the festival. On Diwali day, 24-h values for TSP and PM(10) in all the years from 2002 to 2007 and for NO(2) in 2004 and 2007 were found to be higher than prescribed limits of National Ambient Air Quality Standards and exceptionally high (3.6 times) for PM(10) in 2007. These results indicate that fireworks during the Diwali festival affected the ambient air quality adversely due to emission and accumulation of TSP, PM(10), SO(2), and NO(2).

Ambient air quality of Lucknow City (India) during use of fireworks on Diwali Festival

The present study deals with the effect of fireworks on ambient air quality during Diwali Festival in Lucknow City. In this study, PM(10), SO(2), NO( x ) and 10 trace metals associated with PM(10) were estimated at four representative locations, during day and night times for Pre Diwali (day before Diwali) and Diwali day. On Diwali day 24 h average concentration of PM(10), SO(2), and NO( x ) was found to be 753.3, 139.1, and 107.3 mug m(-3), respectively, and these concentrations were found to be higher at 2.49 and 5.67 times for PM(10), 1.95 and 6.59 times for SO(2) and 1.79 and 2.69 for NO( x ), when compared with the respective concentration of Pre Diwali and normal day, respectively. On Diwali day, 24 h values for PM(10), SO(2), and NO( x ) were found to be higher than prescribed limit of National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS), and exceptionally high (7.53 times) for PM(10). On Diwali night (12 h) mean level of PM(10), SO(2) and NO( x ) was 1,206.2, 205.4 and 149.0 mug m(-3), respectively, which was 4.02, 2.82 and 2.27 times higher than their respective daytime concentrations and showed strong correlations (p < 0.01) with each other. The 24 h mean concentration of metals associated with PM(10) was found to be in the order of Ca (3,169.44) > Fe (747.23) > Zn (542.62) > Cu (454.03), > Pb (307.54) > Mn (83.90) > Co (78.69) > Cr (42.10) > Ni (41.47) > Cd (34.69) in ng m(-3) and all these values were found to be higher than the Pre Diwali (except Fe) and normal day. The metal concentrations on Diwali day were found to be significantly different than normal day (except Fe & Cu). The concentrations of Co, Ni, Cr and Cd on Diwali night were found to be significantly higher than daytime concentrations for Pre Diwali (control). The inter correlation of metals between Ca with Pb, Zn with Ni and Cr, Cu with Co, Co with Mn, Ni with Cd, Mn with Cd, Ni with Cd and Cr, and Cr with Cd showed significant relation either at p < 0.05 or P < 0.01 levels, which indicated that their sources were the same. The metals Cu, Co, Ni, Cr and Cd showed significant (p < 0.01) association with PM(10). These results indicate that fireworks during Diwali festival affected the ambient air quality adversely due to emission and accumulation of PM(10), SO(2), NO( x ) and trace metals.

Emissions and accumulation of metals in the atmosphere due to crackers and sparkles during Diwali festival in India

Abstract In India, Diwali is known as one of the most famous festivals. On the occasion of this festival, people burn crackers and sparkles to express their happiness. The burning of these fireworks leads to metal pollution in air. In this study, metal concentrations in ambient air were observed to be very high as compared to background values on previous days. For some metals the concentrations were observed to be higher than reported at industrial sites. The order of concentration of metals on the day of festival was observed to be in the order—K>Al>Ba>Mg>Fe>Sr>Na>Ca>Cu>Mn>As>V>Ni>Bi. Interestingly, the concentrations of Ba, K, Al and Sr went up to 1091, 25, 18 and 15 times higher than the previous day of Diwali. This study indicated that burning of crackers and sparkles on Diwali is a very strong source of air pollution which contributes significantly high amount of metals in air.