NEW DELHI: Delhi’s air quality slipped back into the “very poor” category on Wednesday after remaining in the “severe” zone for six days on the trot, with a change in the wind direction reducing the contribution of stubble burning in city’s pollution.
The city recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 388 at 9 am. The 24-hour average AQI was 476 on Tuesday.
Delhi witnessed six “severe” air days on the trot till Tuesday. It had recorded seven “severe” air days in November last year.        The neighbouring cities of Faridabad (345), Ghaziabad (390), Noida (339), Greater Noida (322), and Gurgaon (309), which fall in the National Capital Region (NCR), also recorded “very poor” air quality.         The levels of PM2.5 – which is about three per cent the diameter of a human hair and can lead to premature deaths from heart and lung diseases – were 233 microgram per cubic meter (µg/m3) at 9 am, below the emergency threshold of 300 µg/m3.
The safe limit is 60 µg/m3.
On Tuesday, PM2.5 levels had soared to 528 µg/m3 in the afternoon.         PM10 level stood at 384 µg/m3 at 9 pm. It had peaked to 685 µg/m3 on Tuesday, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data. PM10 levels below 100 µg/m3 are considered safe in India and 500 µg/m3 is the emergency threshold.         According to the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), the air quality is considered in the “severe plus” or “emergency” category if PM2.5 and PM10 levels persist above 300 µg/m3 and 500 µg/m3 for more than 48 hours.         GRAP recommends measures such as a ban on construction activities, entry of trucks and car rationing scheme in such a scenario.
The Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas on Tuesday tasked the CPCB with operationalising and monitoring GRAP measures till a mechanism is set up by the newly-constituted panel.         At a meeting, the commission also decided that in view of deteriorating air quality in the NCR region, there is a need to invoke the GRAP, which has been already notified by the central government.
GRAP, which is a set of anti-pollution measures followed in Delhi and its vicinity towns according to the severity of the situation, came into force on October 15.
An official of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the predominant wind direction is east-northeasterly, which is not favourable for transport of pollutants from farm fires in Punjab and Haryana.         The city recorded a minimum temperature of 11.4 degrees Celsius on Wednesday morning. Calm winds and low temperatures trap pollutants close to the ground, while favourable wind speed helps in their dispersion.
The central government’s Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi said, “The change in wind direction and wind speed has positively impacted air quality. It is likely to remain in the upper end of the ‘very poor’ category on Thursday and deteriorate marginally on Friday.”
“The farm fire count in Punjab was around 3500 on Tuesday, but the impact of stubble burning on air quality was negligible because of easterly winds,” it said.         The share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution was 22 per cent on Tuesday.
Delhi’s ventilation index — a product of mixing depth and average wind speed — is likely to be around 12,500 m2/s on Wednesday, favourable for dispersion of pollutants.
Mixing depth is the vertical height in which pollutants are suspended in the air. It reduces on cold days with calm wind speed.
The ventilation index lower than 6000 m2/s with average wind speed less than 10 kmph is unfavourable for dispersion of pollutants. (AGENCIES)

PATNA: Surmounting anti-incumbency of 15 Years, a mutinous former ally, and a spirited challenge from a resurgent opposition that rose from its ashes like proverbial phoenix after the 2019 Lok Sabha poll debacle, Nitish Kumar- led NDA was back in power in Bihar on Wednesday with a slender majority.
The ruling coalition won 125 seats in the 243-member state assembly against 110 clinched by the opposition Grand Alliance to pave the way for a fourth successive term for Kumar in office but with diminished clout following a debilitating slide in the number of JD(U) lawmakers that came down to 43 from 71 in 2015.
Kumar was then a partner in the Grand Alliance which included Lalu Prasad’s RJD and the Congress.
Its defeat notwithstanding, the RJD, whose campaign Tejashwi Yadav, the younger son and heir to party supremo Lalu Prasad helmed, emerged as the single largest party with 75 seats. The BJP, which led the table for several hours during the counting that dragged on for over 16 hours, finished second with a tally of 74 seats.
Despite the slump in numbers, Kumar, who was declared the NDA’s chief ministerial candidate by the BJP brass, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief J P Nadda, is set to take over the reins of the government.
Much of Kumar’s plight can be blamed on the damage Chirag Paswan’s LJP inflicted on his JD(U). Down in the dumps with just one MLA, the party spoiled the JD(U)’s chances in at least 30 seats.
JD(U) spokesperson K C Tyagi told PTI in New Delhi that a “sinister” campaign was run against Nitish Kumar as part of a “conspiracy”.
“Apne bhi shamil the aur begane bhi (Our own also harmed us along with the outsiders),” he said, without taking any names.
He, however, expressed confidence that Kumar will become the chief minister again, noting that top BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have made it clear that he will head the government if the ruling NDA retains power.
Bihar BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal voiced similar views in Patna when he said in Patna “the issue has been cleared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief J P Nadda much before the elections”.
Apart from BJP’s 74 seats and JD(U)’s 43, the ruling alliance partners HAM and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) won four seats each.
The drastic fall in the number of JD(U) MLAs, however, will likely make the BJP, which hitherto played a second fiddle to Kumar, more assertive, and it may insist on a larger share in the ministerial pie and greater say in governance.
Apart from Kumar’s creditable performance as an administrator, the multiple claimants to Muslim votes, including the Grand Democratic Secular Front (GDSF) comprising Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM, BSP and Upendra Kushwaha’s RLSP worked in NDA’s favour and scuppered the Mahagathbandhan’s chances. Muslim and Yadav voters have for long formed the bedrock of the RJD’s support base.
Owaisi’s AIMIM emerged as a surprise package of the election, winning five seats. The party had gained a foothold winning a seat in a by-election in Bihar earlier, but made significant inroads into the Seemanchanchal region which has a large presence of Muslim voters. Its ally BSP also clinched one seat.
Kumar, who has a clean image and is considered incorruptible, has been credited with ridding the state of the “jungle raj”, as the Lalu-Rabri government of 15 years preceding 2005 is often described by its critics.
The JD(U) leader also earned praise for his impetus on infrastructure development and improving health care system and education.
Besides, Modi’s enduring charisma not only powered the alliance’s victory but also helped the BJP to pre-eminent position in the NDA in Bihar for the first time and cut his former bete noire Nitish Kumar, once considered a secular alternative to him, to size.
The election also saw the coming of age of Tejashwi Yadav, who came across as an indefatigable leader after RJD’s unprecedented drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls last year when it failed to open its account.
The NDA had clinched all but one of the 40 seats in the state, leaving the young leader in torpor and his party demoralised. Tejashwi’s ability to lead the party in the absence of his charismatic father and party supremo Lalu Prasad, who had landed in jail after conviction in fodder scam cases, was called into question.
However, after the assembly elections were announced, he steeled himself for the struggle ahead and almost single handedly brought the five party Grand Alliance surprisingly close to power in a fight where an army of battle hardened veterans were arrayed against him.
A major upshot of the gruelling electoral tussle between the two alliances was the resurgence of Left, which aligned with the RJD-Congress combine after being pushed to the margins in the post-Mandal era politics of Bihar.
The biggest gainer was the CPI-ML, which clinched 12 seats, followed by the CPI and CPI-M (two each). Barring the CPI-ML, which had three seats in the outgoing assembly, none of the Left parties had a presence in the House.
Brothers Tejashwi Yadav and Tej Pratap won the Raghopur and Hasanpur seats with impressive margins of 38,174 and 21,139 votes respectively.
Prominent losers from the RJD included Abdul Bari Siddiqui, a former state party chief, and Lalu Prasad’s Man Friday Bhola Yadav who lost from Keoti and Hayaghat seats in Darbhanga respectively.
Senior Bihar minister Vijendra Prasad Yadav of JD(U) won from Supual, and Niraj Singh Babloo of the BJP, a cousin of actor Sushant Singh Rajput, whose mysterious death became an election issue, retained the Chhatapur seat.
State assembly speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary of the JD(U) was among the victors.
Ace former shooter and Commonwealth gold medalist Shreyasi Singh of BJP won the Jamui seat by over 41,000 votes, but veteran socialist leader Sharad Yadav’s daughter Subhashini lost in Bihariganj.
HAM president Jitan Ram Manjhi defeated former state assembly speaker Uday Narayan Chaudhary in Imamganj of Gaya district. (AGENCIES)

NEW DELHI: The Government has brought films, audiovisuals, news and current affairs content on online platforms under the domain of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
According to a notification issued by the Cabinet Secretariat on Tuesday night, content made available by online providers such as Netflix will also come under the ministry.
The notification, signed by President Ram Nath Kovind, said the decision has been taken in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (3) of article 77 of the Constitution, by amending the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 and it will come into effect immediately.
With this, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has the power to regulate policies related to news, audio, visual contents and films available on online platforms.
“These rules may be called the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Three Hundred and Fifty Seventh Amendment Rules, 2020. They shall come into force at once.
(AGENCIES)