Kolkata: 2-year break helps administration keep lakes clean in first post-Covid Chhath

KOLKATA: Rabindra Sarobar on Sunday, the day of Chhath Puja, had the best ever air quality index in the recent Chhath days with two years of Covid breaks helping the administration in complying with the NGT order to keep the city's two main lakes green and clean. The air quality index (AQI) of the rest of the city remained moderate.

On the first day of Chhath, at 5pm, when the puja and revelry happen with the bursting of firecrackers, the city's air quality AQI plunged from satisfactory (50-100) to moderate (100-200).But the AQI at Rabindra Sarobar remained green (satisfactory) at 82.

In 2021, 2020 and 2019, the AQI on the Chhath evenings were 146, 96, and 219, respectively.
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In 2019, the administration failed to keep Chhath devotees at bay. The Chhath celebrations happened on the Lake premises, degrading the water quality and causing distress to its bio-diversity. "The NGT came down heavily on the administration in 2020 forcing the administration to secure these two lakes from devotees," said a Lake lover and environment activist Somendra Mohan Ghosh.
"This is the third consecutive year when the city police and KMDA managed to fortify the two lakes, two lungs of the city and perhaps the two best biodiversity hot spots to comply with NGT order. It will remain an example and landmark for the conservation of ecology for any major city in the world," said green crusader Subhas Datta, whose petition led the NGT to ban Chhath in two lakes of the city.
"As a lake user, I am very happy that these two lakes were spared from the onslaught of devotees. It was very important to save these green zones, with the city's open space getting shrunk rapidly," said Prabir Bose, former director NIT, Agartala, who is a regular morning walker at the Lake.
The gates of both Rabindra Sarobar and Subhas Sarobar were shut with barricades around 7pm on Saturday. It will stay shut till 4pm on Monday. The enforcement was aided by efforts of KMDA and KMC to make alternative ghats for devotees. Engaging with senior members of the Bihari Samaj helped break the deadlock.
"Significantly, Rabindra Sarobar represents the city's best air shed, thanks to its greenery and vast water body. Sarobar is also a carbon sink, which absorbs pollutants of a vast area around it. So, after heightened anthropogenic activities (pollution caused by human activities), its air fast swings back to the best possible form," said Sudipto Bhattacharya, an environmentalist.