A ‘black crust’ is forming on the walls of the Red Fort due to high levels of air pollution, a study titled ‘Characterization of Red Sandstone and Black Crust to Analyze Air Pollution Impacts on a Cultural Heritage Building: Red Fort, Delhi, India’.
Researchers found that the crusts – deposits formed due to chemical interactions between pollutants and the walls of the red sandstone fort – were between 0.05mm and 0.5mm thick, and could damage its intricate carvings if no action was taken. Further, the study is the first of its kind to comprehensively examine the effects of air pollution on the 17th Century monument.
The report comes nearly a month after Delhi’s environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, announced that the Capital has recorded its cleanest air for the month of July over the past 10 years, according to data shared by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Until July 30, the monthly average air quality index (AQI) has been 79, which is classified as “satisfactory”, according to CPCB’s categorisation.
The average AQI in July 2024 was 96, and in July 2023, it was 83.67. To be sure, CPCB began calculating AQI from April 2015. The clean air is just temporary much attributed to the month long rainfall in the national capital, as Delhi awaits for highest pollution months ahead.
The Red Fort, built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, is one of Delhi’s most iconic heritage monuments and a popular tourist attraction.
India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru hoisted the national flag from the fort on 16 August 1947, a day after independence from Britain was declared. Since then, prime ministers have been delivering speeches on Independence Day from the ramparts of the fort.
The study on the Red Fort, published in the peer-reviewed open access scientific journal Heritage in June, was conducted between 2021 and 2023 by researchers in India and Italy.
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