West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee & Commerce & Industry minister Nirupam Sen, both CPI(M) polit bureau member, boasted of a line-up of automobile projects by big business (includng MNCs). On 4 March last ,some newspapers carried a news that no 2 in the CPI(M) PB Sitaram Yechury wrote to the stopgap Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee as head of a parliamentary panel, to grant Rs 38000 crore loan to Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland (Indian arm of British MNC) and Eichers.
They are not concerned of silent genocide that has already affected major metros, the most menacing being in Kolkata.
Statesnab.s Sunday Mag -8th Day- carried a piece on this which is pasted below.
SR
Environment: 'Phasing out the old is a must' 8 Mar 08 (http://thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=30&theme=&usrsess=1&id=246266)
A recent World Bank survey shows that the contribution to pollution by diesel fuel combustion can be as high as 23 per cent in
EVERY morning that you leave home for work you're hit in the face by a cloud of acrid diesel smoke at a major crossing. This is the usual occurence in Kolkata and you think nothing about it, however unpleasant the experience might be. What you don't realise is that this is hazardous to your health.
Today Kolkata has a vehicular contingent of nearly 65 per cent and nearly 99 per cent of its commercial vehicles are diesel-run. So what is diesel and what does it have to do with us? The answer is simple. Diesel engine exhaust contains a number of potent carcinogens — particulate matter (mainly elemental and organic carbon soot) coated in gaseous organic substances such as formaldehyde and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (a group of super-toxic gases) that are the primary and secondary air pollutants. Hundreds of compounds have been identified as constituents of diesel particles. What's more, diesel exhaust contains several gaseous compounds that include carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides (which again form ground level ozone), sulphur dioxide and organic vapours, for example, formaldehyde and 1,3-butadiene which have been classified as toxic and hazardous pollutants. These pollutants are also emitted by petrol-driven vehicles.
A single diesel car emits as much NOx into the environmentas three to five petrol-powered ones. A recent survey by the World Bank on air pollution in
Studies show that ultra-fine airborne particles that are less than 0.1 microns in diameter (PM0.1) are 10 to 50 times as potent as PM2.5-PM10 in inducing oxidant damage. These are also able to carry more toxic hydrocarbons, metals and other toxins, per unit mass, than larger particles. The annual average level of repairable suspended particulate matter exceeded the national standard by 1.4 times and carcinogenic benzene levels in Kolkata during the winter were found to be as high as 36ug/cum. These pollutants are largely emitted from two-stroke vehicles with incomplete combustion and without the use of a catalytic converter and also from the fleet of old diesel-run vehicles on the city's roads.
The health hazards caused by these pollutants may range from subtle biochemical and physiological changes to difficulty in breathing, wheezing, coughing and exacerbation of asthma and bronchitis or to slowing the rate of children's lung development. In addition, an interaction with allergens helps to heighten allergic symptoms, increase allergic antibody production and augment allergic sensitisation.
Diesel Exhaust Particles are microscopic. More than 90 per cent of these are less than a micron in diameter. Due to their minute size, these particles can penetrate deep into the lungs and can have profound pro-inflammatory and pro-allergenic effects in humans and animals.
The health of our lungs and respiratory system is dependent on the quality of air we breathe. Exposure to chemicals can affect us badly. The respiratory system is particularly sensitive to air pollutants because much of it is made up of exposed membrane. Our lungs are anatomically structured to inhale large quantities of air, on an average 400 million litres in a lifetime, and are in intimate contact with the blood system to facilitate the delivery of oxygen to the other organs.
The main route for air pollutants is through the nose, mouth and throat. Airborne particles larger than PM2.5 are removed in the upper and middle airways. These particles are trapped in a mucus layer that lines the nose, trachea and bronchi and are carried up to the back of the throat on a moving carpet of mucus, which is propelled by cilia pulsing a thousand times a minute, to be finally swallowed. The upper and middle air pathway is very efficient in removing harmful pollutants. Concentrations of chemicals build up in the nose as the air is cleaned. But extensive exposure can cause the accumulated pollutants to be absorbed in mucus membranes.
Particulate matters come in different sizes and the ultra fine one — less than 2.5 microns — can interfere with the respiratory system. The ultra-fine particles reach the alveoli. There, the lungs employ a different kind of cleaning agent: macrophages, large white blood cells that eat foreign invaders such as bacteria and viruses by engulfing them, encasing them in an intracellular stomach, and then injecting bleach-like chemicals into the container. The invader dies, degrades and is reabsorbed by the body along with the macrophage itself.
But these PMs are not easy to remove. Lung tissue cells can be injured directly by air pollutants such as ozone, metals and free radicals. Ozone can damage the alveoli and the air sacs in the lung where oxygen and carbon dioxide are exchanged.
The cell damage caused by exposure to chemical pollutants puts the body's defence system on the alert and initiates an inflammatory response, similar to an allergic response. This can cause immune suppression, making the body more susceptible to disease. It can also trigger a secondary immune response by causing the release of various chemicals. In response to toxic insult, lung cells also release a variety of potent chemical mediators that may critically affect the function of other organs such as those of the cardiovascular system. This response may also cause lung inflammation and impair lung functions.
Air pollutants like benzene, lead, mercury, carbon monoxide, volatile nitrites, pesticides and herbicides have been found to have harmful effects on the blood as well as the system that is involved in the formation of blood, including blood cells, bone marrow, spleen, lymph nodes and the network of cells that clear foreign particles and infectious micro-organisms. Some air pollutants interfere with the function of blood, which results in detrimental effects on all organs. For example, haemoglobin is part of the red blood cell that carries oxygen from the lungs to the tissues. Carbon monoxide, a product of incomplete combustion, binds over 200 times more firmly to haemoglobin than oxygen, resulting in interference with blood's oxygen-transport capability. Acute exposure can result in death due to asphyxiation or permanent damage to the central nervous system.
And not just this, severe inflammation can cause scarring of lung tissue, called fibrosis, and abnormal thickening, making breathing more difficult. Ground-level ozone has been shown to contribute to hyper-responsiveness to allergens and mucus production that exacerbates asthma in children and adults.
Inhalation of particulate matter that is 2.5 microns in diameter and smaller than PM2.5 doesn't appear to harm the larger passages of the lungs, but does injure the deeper, smaller thin-walled bronchioles where the body begins to extract oxygen from air. The tiny airborne particles can lodge permanently in the lungs and cause free radical damage that leads to inflammation of the tissue lining the lungs. More specifically, airway tissues which are rich in bio-activation enzymes can transform organic pollutants into reactive metabolites and cause secondary problems. Finally, the very unhealthy combination of oxidants damages cells, making them more vulnerable to cancer from exposure to these carcinogens.
Recent studies show that 43 per cent of urban children and 14 per cent of rural children suffer from reparatory disorders. The worst part is that 94-98 per cent are found to produce sputum. The alveolar macrophage count of adults is more than eight times higher and air pollution-related allergies seven times higher than people in the Sunderbans.
Pollution increases because most vehicles are old and run on bad technology. The use of adulterated fuel and diesel is, of course, the main reason. Although the good news is that there is technology to clean emissions from these engines, the bad news is that clean diesel technology and fuel to help reduce these emissions by 90 per cent are presently not available in
So what can be done to improve the environment? Sunita Narain, an environmentalist who recently visited Kolkata, said, "Phasing out two-stroke three-wheelers and transforming auto-rickshaws to run on LPG-driven four-stoke engines is essential. Phasing out old private cars, taxis and commercial vehicles as well as CNG- and LPG-run vehicles should be accorded top priority.
"This apart, Kolkata is privileged to have a multi-model public transport system — Metro rail, suburban railway, extensive tram tracks and bus service."
A recent study carried out under the aegis of the Union ministry of urban development says that even today public transport meets as much as 54 per cent of the travel needs in Kolkata — the highest in the country. "Unfortunately, the city continues to neglect its strengths. Which is evident from its failure to increase the scope of its public transportion system. Proper integration and expansion can save the city from pollution and congestion," said Narain.
Which leaves the state government with the responsibility of taking radical steps. This exercise has to go beyond academic nitpicking and political platitudes if it is to assume any semblance of urgency.
How fun is this? IMing with Windows Live Messenger just got better.
__._,_.___