About Sher Bahadur, a patient from Nepal struggles to negotiate with the growing air pollution in Durgapur.

Failing to manage his increasing hemoptysis that had increased within days of landing at Durgapur, Bahadur disappeared from the sub-divisional hospital on Thursday morning. Doctors said that Bahadur, a non-smoker never experienced such a respiratory disorder before.

Biswadip Roy Chowdhury, a young entrepreneur from Bidhannagar here, had quit smoking 12 years ago and he suffered a sudden respiratory attack on Wednesday afternoon at his workplace. He said: “I felt total discomfort breathing with pressure in my chest and had to use a breathalyzer for immediate relief.

Bidhannagar, near NH-19, is surrounded by a cluster of private iron and steel units, scrambling for quality air and recorded the highest presence of hazardous PM-10 at 256 marks at 1.55 pm in the ambient air yesterday. PM-10 is a particulate matter with a diameter of 10 micrometers or less and it is generated by the reckless operation of the industrial units. The WHO (World Health Organization) stipulated that the presence of PM-10 should not exceed an average of 15 micrograms per cubic meter of air in 24 hours.

“I was supposed to quit smoking in 2008, but November this year has made me realize how bad the air pollution has become and it feels like I was puffing at least 30 cigarettes a day,” exclaimed another Bidhannagar resident Kobi Ghosh, secretary, Sports & Cultural Clubs Coordination Society here today. The organization has decided to demonstrate on Friday and demand clear air.

India’s National Clean Air Programme, launched in January 2019, seems to have fallen flat in large parts of Bidhannagar and greater Durgapur these days. Both in the City Center – the city’s central administrative corridor – PM-10 and PM-2.5 appeared moderate, but on Saturday afternoon live AQI (air quality index) was recorded at 198, which was well above the WHO prescribed level and AQI between 151-200 denotes air quality as “unhealthy inviting health hazards.” In Bidhannagar, the AQI measured by the West Bengal Pollution Control Board’s censors was 322 at 2.30 pm today, but it was surpassed at 330 in the Mahiskapur area of ​​the steel assembly.

AQI 330, according to the health experts, is equivalent to free smoking of about 15 to 20 cigarettes a day, which leads to increased risk of respiratory problems, asthma, exacerbation and cardiovascular stress.

West Bengal Pollution Control Board and Durgapur Municipal Corporation, meanwhile, have opted for some remedial measures to combat growing air pollution. The WBPCB regional authorities here have suspended the operation of two privately owned induction furnace units at Bamunara Industrial Complex – about 3 km from Bidhannagar recently. Arup Dey, regional environmental engineer, Durgapur said, “They consistently flouted norms despite repeated warnings.” He added: “Some thermal power units and some iron and steel units are under scanner.” The DMC, meanwhile, has pressed a fog cannon to control flying SPM (suspended particulate matter) in the urban environment.

“Sher Bahadur suddenly developed severe cough with blood, which could not be managed,” said Dr Dhiman Mondal, superintendent, sub-divisional hospital. Bahadur’s relative Ram Shrestha said: “He kept saying he would return to Nepal because he cannot breathe properly here.”

The hospitals in Durgapur have recently registered an influx of patients who have been admitted with several lung diseases. “Mostly we get patients of various age groups either with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) due to the declining air quality, apart from cases of broncho-pneumonia these days,” said Dr Shantanu Das, senior pulmonologist at a Bidhannagar-based tertiary care hospital. here.