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IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF GRAP SCHEME IMPLEMENTATION AT CONSTRUCTION SITES IN DELHI NCR REGIONS

2026-10-16T06:33:58Z

Title: IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF GRAP SCHEME IMPLEMENTATION AT CONSTRUCTION SITES IN DELHI NCR REGIONS Authors: CHOWDHARY, SPARSH; Mishra, Rajeev Kumar (SUPERVISOR) Abstract: The high level of air pollution in Delhi city requires rigorous efforts for reducing hazardous levels of pollution. In this study the different Phases of GRAP were analyzed in 10 different construction sites. The different phases of GRAP implementation during the year 2024 and 2025 were analyzed for the study. The study revealed that the PM2.5 and PM10 concentration trend observed in sensor follows similar trend to the CAAQMS. The PM2.5 concentration in the study region ranged up to 600 µg/m³, and for PM10 it was up to 800 µg/m³. Construction site VIII is the lowest recorded concentration with a values < 200 µg/m³ for both the PM2.5 and PM10. The GRAP was implemented during different phases based on the concentration. The period before the GRAP and post GRAP was considered as the period with lower concentrations. GRAP IV and GRAP III period were of the highest concentration of PM values. The GRAP implementation at construction sites revealed that the emission sources reduced during GRAP IV and the concentration decreases gradually. The GRAP policy implementation revealed that the stringent GRAP phases were established during the period of 2024 to 2025 which have major impact on percentage changes. Reduction in concentration of particles were observed more for PM10 concentrations and in increase of concentration the PM2.5 were found to be more. Stringent implementation of mitigation measures leads to improve in air quality in a region. The study plays significant role in achieving various SDGs by reducing air pollution, improving public health, and contributing to sustainable urban and industrial practices.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF MULTILAYER MILK PACKAGING THROUGH CRADLE-TO-GRAVE LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT

2026-10-16T06:33:53Z

Title: ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF MULTILAYER MILK PACKAGING THROUGH CRADLE-TO-GRAVE LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT Authors: KUMAR, ADARSH; GOUR, ANUNAY A. (SUPERVISOR) Abstract: Rapidly evolving lifestyles in developing countries have driven an increased demand for multilayer packaging used for packaged milk and beverages. This growth in consumption is driven by multiple factors. For example, demand often spikes to three to five times normal levels during festive seasons, surpassing local limited production. The need to transport surplus milk from high-production regions to other areas is supported by the packaging's superior barrier properties, which provide an extended shelf life. The manufacturing of multilayer packaging has created many environmental concerns due to its multiple layering manufacturing composition of LDPE, paperboard, and aluminum; due to its difficult recycling and disposal. This thesis utilizes material composition analysis and life cycle assessment (LCA) to assess environmental impact of manufacturing 10,000 units of 1-litre multilayer milk packs. The assessment follows a cradle-to-grave approach in line with the ISO standards, and it covers many impact categories including global warming potential, energy demand, total water consumption, and local/global resource depletion. The assessment was undertaken in the OpenLCA environment using impact assessment methods by ReCiPe 2016 v1.03, midpoint (H) sourced from the EcoInvent v3.12 database. To analyze the composition of materials used in Multi-Layer Packaging (MLP), experimental characterization was conducted on standard 1-litre capacity, brick-shaped cartons. Parameters such as moisture content, total surface area and precise material composition ratio were determined through empirical laboratory testing to establish the physical baseline for the LCA study. These physical properties are critical for defining the system boundaries of data collection and calculating the exact quantity of raw materials required. Which are paperboard, low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and aluminum foil required for the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The quantification of these specific inputs and outputs of resources, helps the study to provide a precise model of the environmental burdens associated with the production of 10,000 units of packaged milk. This broad analysis encircles the entire product lifecycle, extending from the initial extraction of raw materials to final waste disposal.

ASSESSMENT OF AMBIENT PARTICULATE MATTER (PM10, PM2.5, PM1) AND PARTICLE NUMBER CONCENTRATION DURING DIWALI AT A RESIDENTIAL SITE IN DELHI

2026-10-16T06:32:47Z

Title: ASSESSMENT OF AMBIENT PARTICULATE MATTER (PM10, PM2.5, PM1) AND PARTICLE NUMBER CONCENTRATION DURING DIWALI AT A RESIDENTIAL SITE IN DELHI Authors: SHARMA, URJIT; Mishra, Rajeev Kumar (SUPERVISOR) Abstract: Delhi is known for its bad air quality and the ambient air quality gets worse during the post-monsoon season, and the burdens of Diwali festival are heavy pollution stress on an already stressed Delhi air quality. No previous study had measured PM mass fractions (PM₁₀, PM₂.₅, PM₁) and PNC at a less-trafficked residential location in Delhi, which was necessary to isolate the firework signal from vehicular emissions. This study addresses this by conducting a continuous monitoring campaign at Palam, south west Delhi, for 6 days between 19–25 October 2025, using a GRIMM Aerosol OPC 11D at 1 min resolution, which produced 8,555 quality-controlled data for four phases: Pre-Diwali, Diwali Day, Post-Diwali 1 and Post-Diwali 2. On all monitoring days, the Indian NAAQS 24-hour guideline was violated; while the pre-festival baseline was exceeded by 2.37× the PM₂.₅ and 3.61× the PM₁₀ limits. The Diwali evening episode (20 October, 18:00–24:00 h) produced the campaign's peak aerosol loading: PM₁₀ = 1,542.7 µg/m³, PM₂.₅ = 834.7 µg/m³, PM₁ = 531.4 µg/m³, and PNC = 9.661 × 10⁶ particles/cm³. The evening 6-hour mean PM₂.₅ was 405.6 µg/m³, which was 6.8 times the NAAQS limit and 27 times the WHO guideline for 24 hours. Most importantly, the post-Diwali episode of smog (21 October) had the highest mean of PM₂.₅ during the study period (264.7 µg/m³; EF = 4.41) and the highest excess exposure (2,945 µg·h/m³). The Mann–Whitney U test showed no significant difference in distribution between Diwali Day and Post-Diwali 1 (p = 0.261), indicating that the hazardous air quality event persisted for 3 days. The Pearson correlations were very high (r ≥ 0.997) between PM₁, PM₂.₅ and PNC and the Fine Fraction Ratios were consistently above 0.7, reflecting the dominance of sub-micron combustion aerosols throughout. Excess PM₂.₅ above background was found to be 35-46% pyrotechnic activity. During Diwali week, all the analysed elements recorded significantly higher levels than the national and international standards. The results could help policymakers and regulatory bodies assess the effectiveness of existing regulations for festivals on the ground and enact measures to limit air pollution from firecrackers and their impact on public health.

SPATIO-TEMPORAL VARIATION OF OZONE OVER THE EASTERN AND WESTERN INDO-GANGETIC PLAIN

2026-10-16T06:32:42Z

Title: SPATIO-TEMPORAL VARIATION OF OZONE OVER THE EASTERN AND WESTERN INDO-GANGETIC PLAIN Authors: SINGH, ANUBHA; Gupta, Lovleen (SUPERVISOR) Abstract: One of the most populated and polluted parts of India is the Indo Gangetic plain (IGP), where the systematic analysis of TCO trends on a sub-regional basis over a considerable period of time is still lacking. This study examines the spatio-temporal variation and long-term trends of the TCO over two contrasting ends of the IGP — the state of Punjab in the West and the state of West Bengal in the East — covering the period of 2004–2025 using satellite data from NASA's O3 Monitoring Instrument (OMI) and ESA's Sentinel-5P TROPOMI, extracted using the Google Earth Engine (GEE). Within each state, a high-O3 and a low-O3 region were identified and studied separately to capture the intra-state variability. Trend analysis was performed out using the Mann-Kendall (MK) test and Sen's slope estimator using R, across monthly, seasonal, and annual time periods. Results show that Punjab consistently recorded higher TCO values (annual mean O3 of around 286 DU) than West Bengal (annual O3 of around 270 DU), consistent with the north-to-south O3 gradient observed over India. Both states show statistically significant increasing annual trends (p < 0.05 for all four regions). The pre-monsoon season (March–May) comes out as the period of peak O3 loading in both regions, driven by improved photochemical activity and biomass burning. The lowest O3 values appear during the post-monsoon period (October December). Sen's slope values show an increase of about 0.42–0.50 DU/year across all regions. These findings highlight the need for region-specific air quality supervision, specifically ozone.