The Air quality in Kolkata turned poorer on Sunday evening from what it was 24 hours ago on the Kali puja and Diwali day, but it was still better when compared to that recorded a day after the festivals last year, an official of the West Bengal Pollution Control Board said.
The levels of air pollution during Diwali this year were found much higher as compared to the last year while a significant dip was found in noise pollution level, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) revealed on Sunday. In a special report, the CPCB said almost all pollutants reported higher values on Diwali day and pre-Diwali day this year as compared to 2019. "It is observed that if compared with 2019 pre-Deepawali day (21.10.2019) concentrations of NO2, PM10 and PM2.5 were found to be much higher on pre-Deepawali day (on 09.11.2020) at all the monitored locations, while SO2 concentrations were at a similar level. On Deepawali day (14.11.2020), almost all the pollutants reported higher values as compared to 2019 Diwali day," the report stated.
The portals of the Gangotri Temple in Uttarkashi were closed for winters on the occasion of Annakoot-Govardhan Puja on Sunday. The temple gates were shut at 12:15 pm after a puja by priests in the presence of a large number of devotees, Uttarakhand Chardham Devasthanam Board media in-charge Harish Gaud said. After the closure of the temple gates, an idol of goddess Ganga was carried in a palanquin decorated with flowers to Mukhba village where she will be worshipped during winters.
India is all set to showcase the massive firepower of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile by the month-end as the three defence forces would carry out multiple firings of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) developed missile system in the Indian Ocean Region in the last week of this month.
Delhi recorded as many as 3,235 fresh coronavirus cases on Sunday. With this, the tally of COVID-19 cases in the state has reached over 4.85 lakh, while the death toll mounted to 7,614. Ninety-five fatalities have been recorded in the last 24 hours, according to the latest bulletin issued by the Delhi health department.
India has reported less than 50,000 new daily cases of COVID-19 for the eighth continuous day, a trend which assumes wider significance as many countries in Europe and America continue to see a surge in their daily numbers, the Union Health Ministry said on Sunday. A total of 41,100 persons were found to be infected with COVID-19 in India in a span of 24 hours, while 42,156 people recuperated during the same period, leading to a further contraction of the active caseload.
Three people, including an eight-year-old boy and his mother, were killed and four injured when a wall collapsed after a domestic LPG cylinder exploded near Tiruvannamalai on Sunday, police said. The injured had been hospitalised and investigations were on with a case registered over the incident, suspected to have been triggered by a gas leak at a house in nearby Arani, a police official said.Republic Day 2024 : As India's 75th Republic Day Parade kicked off in the national capital, a 30-member band contingent and a marching c...
