Mumbai: The BMC has plans to set up an additional five Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) in the city. These stations will enable the civic body to study air quality and pollution patterns. The monitoring stations are expected to be commissioned in the next six months.
The city has been experiencing poor air for the last two years. So the BMC set up its own air monitoring stations two months back. Currently, there are five such stations at Hindi Municipal School Complex in Govandi west, Highway Suvidha Kendra on Eastern Express Highway in Ghatkopar, near the penguin hall in Byculla Zoo, Sewri Municipal School Complex and BMC maternity home in Charkop-Kandivali west.
"Currently we are identifying locations where we can set up additional monitoring stations. We have listed a few places. Once the place is finalised, we will start the tendering process. We hope that they will be commissioned in the next six months," said officials with BMC's environment department. Khar, Kanjurmarg, Borivali, Haji Ali, Parel are some of the places where the BMC is planning to build a new air monitoring station. However, it is yet to finalise the location.
The BMC has also appointed the Indian Institute of Technology (Kanpur) to study and submit a report if sensor-based air quality monitoring stations can be set up across the city. Other than this, Mumbai has nine System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) air-quality monitoring stations managed by the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), an autonomous institute under the ministry of earth sciences. These stations have been recording air quality since 2015.
