Navi Mumbai: Chemical Stink Adds To City's Obnoxious Air Pollution Woe, Claims Environmentalist

An obnoxious chemical stink pervades the air in Navi Mumbai, particularly in the evenings and nights, even as the city continues to report poor air quality index, environmentalists claimed. They noticed the “terrible stink” spreading from Koparkhairane up to Sanpada over the past week or so.

Nat Connect director B N Kumar said that he has noticed the “terrible stink” spreading from Koparkhairane up to Sanpada over the past week or so. “There is a possibility that a chemical unit from the Thane-Belapur industrial belt is spewing pollution that causes nausea and even headache," he said. The stink is the same nauseating one throughout,” he said. He added that he raised the problems with the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) and Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB).

Uran emerges as the most polluted city in India

Meanwhile, Uran once again emerged as the most polluted city in the country. Its Air Quality Index was recorded an unhealthy 174 on Monday morning, as per the www.aqui.in website that monitors pollution levels. Even the PM2.5 of Navi Mumbai was recorded 14.9 times the WHO parameters.

The general dusty atmosphere, unchecked truck and dumber pollution and blasts at construction sites are all to blame, NatConnect Foundation complained to the authorities such as NMMC and MPCB.

Reasons for bad air quality in Navi Mumbai

Vivek Kadu from Uran said apart from dust from construction sites of flyovers and roads, the uncovered transport of construction material is also contributing to the bad air quality in the area. Some trucks releasing heavy carbon monoxide into the air are so dirty that one cannot even see their number plates, he said.

Kumar wondered as to what happened to the pollution control board’s flying squads that are supposed to keep a vigil.

Meanwhile, following a complaint from environmentalists on stinking, NMMC administration has alerted the City Engineer and asked him to check.