57% people rate Delhi-NCR air quality 'bad', 'very bad': Survey

Fifty-seven per cent people in Delhi-NCR rate the air quality in the region "bad" or "very bad", according to a survey conducted by non-profit Lung Care Foundation and the US Embassy in New Delhi.  

As many as 1,757 people from different backgrounds and age participated in the survey, which is a part of project "Saaf Hawa Aur Naagrik" (SHAN). The findings of the survey were released on Thursday.   

The Lung Care Foundation said 57.7 per cent of the respondents rated the air quality in Delhi-NCR "bad" or "very bad". 

Most of them (82.2 per cent) knew that air pollution has an impact on their health, while 38.8 percent said they or their family members visited the hospital due to respiratory discomfort in last one year. 

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However, only 31.4 per cent were aware of any public health emergency declared by the Delhi government, the survey said. 

More than 80 per cent of the participants did not know what air quality index is or the difference between PM10 and PM2.5. PM refers to particulate matter. 

The difference is that PM10 is fine particles of 10 microns and below in diameter and PM2.5 is 2.5 microns and below. 

The findings showed 78.9 per cent of the people do not know about the National Clean Air Programme, which proposes a framework to achieve a national-level target of 20-30 per cent reduction of PM2.5 and PM10 concentration between 2017 and 2024. 

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