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“It can also be detrimental to those with respiratory and cardiovascular ailments”
New Delhi, March 20, 2018:
A religious group in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh that goes by the name Shri Ayuchandi Mahayagya Samiti has begun a “mahayagya”, or Hindu ritual of burning wood from the mango tree. They believe this will help in reducing air pollution and plan to burn 50,000 kg of wood over nine days during Navratri.
The smoke from wood burning is made up of a complex mixture of gases and fine particles (also called particle pollution, particulate matter, or PM).
Speaking about this, Padma Shri Awardee Dr KK Aggarwal, President Heart Care Foundation of India (HCFI) and Immediate Past National President Indian Medical Association (IMA), said, “Poor air quality has been linked to various diseases and may trigger acute asthma, heart attack. Air pollution has become a major public health problem, which is still persisting, despite several efforts to curb pollution. It has been postulated that our ancient Vedic rituals like yagna and havans purify our environment. Only one stiudy so far has published in the Indian Journal of Air Pollution Control in 2007, that open air Yagna when performed at a large scale lowered gaseous pollutants like SO2 and NO2 to some extent. Their levels decreased on the day of the Yagna as well as days after it. In this study, mango wood was taken as the basic Samidha for the experiment as it has negligible CO emissions.” But no confirmation has been recorded in future studies.
But it is equally true that the particles in wood smoke can reduce visibility (haze) and create environmental and aesthetic damage in communities and scenic areas. Clearance for any such massive yagna should have a clearance from central pollution board and the people living in the vicinity of the yagnas.
Adding further, Dr Aggarwal, who is also the Vice President, CMAAO, said, “Particulate matter does not stay airborne forever. It not only settles as ‘dust’ in our homes, but also on rivers and streams causing pollution. It falls on crops and works its way into the soil in which they are grown. Just because wood comes from a plant does not make its particulates safe when it lands on organic and other farm soil and crops.”
Although there is a provision for environmental protection in our Constitution and steps have been taken by the government to address this issue, there is still a long way to go before the country can breathe clean air.
The need of the hour is dedicated and sustained efforts which involve the public as well.
Even the NGT in one of the judgment had said that the government should find alternatives for wood used in cremation grounds.
