BHUBANESWAR: The Irish hockey team has expressed concerns about the pollution levels in Bhubaneshwar, which is scheduled to host the Men’s Hockey World Cup in November and December 2018.
Acting on a letter sent by the Irish team to Hockey India, the Odisha sports department has asked the Odisha State Pollution Control Board to furnish details of the city’s latest pollution levels. The Irish team expressed its concerns based on reports published online, says a Calcutta Telegraph report.
“The report may please be sent to us for sharing with Hockey India and the International Hockey Federation so that any apprehension of the visiting teams on this account may be allayed,” Telegraph quotes from the department’s letter.
The Odisha state capital hosted the 2014 Champions Trophy and is prepping to host the Men’s Hockey World League Final in December.
The Telegraph report quotes pollution control board officials as saying that while pollutants in the ambient air were above the permissible limit at all six pollution monitoring stations in the city in February 2016, the levels were much lower now.
“The pollution level at that point of time was high because of piling up of construction materials. This month, however, the pollution level is much below the permissible limit as continuous rain put a dampener on Diwali celebrations,” the report quotes a board official as saying. “The air quality index (AQI), calculated on the basis of pollutants like carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, and carbon dioxide, should be less than 100. The city’s AQI for September and October was 76 and 82, respectively, which is satisfactory,” he said.
