Lucknow: The air is loaded with not just the festive spirit, it also contains allergens that cause problems for those living with asthma. More than 60,000 persons in the city have this ailment.

“Exposure to allergens and irritants like dust, pollution, pollen and smoke triggers asthma which is highly underdiagnosed and under-treated,” says professor Suryakant, head of pulmonary medicine department, King George's Medical University. “Asthma attacks prevent an individual from leading a normal life despite it being easily manageable through timely diagnosis, proper management and adequate treatment plan,” he adds.

China will tighten environmental legislation and force polluters to pay compensation following renewed blasts of toxic air, the country's top legislator said on Sunday.

Zhang Dejiang said in a report to the ceremonial legislature's annual session that businesses were responsible for the environmental damage they caused and must be held to account. He said legal revisions were being prepared, but offered no specifics.

The City police are planning to monitor noise pollution at the traffic junctions using hand-held noise meters in order to record the decibel level and penalise the offenders.

The City police are planning to monitor noise pollution at the traffic junctions using hand-held noise meters in order to record the decibel level and penalise the offenders.

After Delhi and Pune, now it is the turn of Mumbai to get its own model to predict the quality of air.

Air quality in the Kathmandu Valley has been deteriorating continuously, particularly in the last two decades. And air pollution has imposed huge costs on the society and the environment.