To ward off trans-border pollution, state plans mega tree plantation drive

Kolkata: Bengal government is planning to take up a massive tree plantation drive along its borders with Jharkhand and Bihar to minimise the impact of deadly airborne pollutants entering the state from North India during November-January.

The preliminary report of a joint study carried out by IIT Delhi and West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) suggests that about 40-50 per cent of the overall pollutant load of the state comes from beyond its border, particularly during this time of the year, contributing to pollution in the state, said a senior official of the WBPCB.

State Environment minister Manas Bhuniya said his department will tie up with the Forest department in order to check the level of pollution in the state by reducing the effects of these pollutants that are entering Bengal from other states.

"We are taking possible measures within our capacity to reduce the pollution level on a priority basis. We have a plan to carry out a huge plantation drive along the inter-state borders, which will be like a natural fencing of trees. The matter will be taken up with the Forest department as well. The Centre should come up with proper planning as they have a big role to play to check trans-boundary pollution. Let us see what they do," Bhuniya added.

Health experts have warned that ultra fine particles that the pollutants carry enter deep inside the lungs and can trigger critical ailments, including cancer. People should avoid smog as much as possible, especially during this time of the year. One should also wear a mask to protect him/her from a polluted environment. Globally, air pollution causes about 29 per cent of lung cancer deaths, 43 per cent COPD deaths, said Dr Gopeswar Mukherjee, a senior pathologist in the city.

A senior official of the WBPCB maintained that the state government cannot take up the issue with the neighbouring states independently. Inter-state pollution worsens the air quality of the state. It enters Bengal with the help of the northern wind.

The Central Pollution Control Board has plans to work on the inter-state pollution in the Indo-Gangetic plains involving states like Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh. Apart from Northern India, pollutants also enter the state from Bangladesh, the official added.