DSS halts updates amid data recheck

Its (DSS) data and accuracy was not in line with the terms of reference set for the model... some of the data or the emissions inventory being used was fairly old. CAQM OFFICIAL

- Jasjeev Gandhiok

The Decision Support System (DSS) - the sole source apportionment tool currently available to assess or estimate sources of pollution in Delhi - has ceased updates.

The reason: its performance is being evaluated by a Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) committee, which has asked the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) - it runs this model - to make "certain changes" to improve accuracy and align the model with updated terms of reference.

The last data update on the DSS website spans November 26 to November 29, with no subsequent updates available.

A CAQM official, speaking on condition of anonymity, clarified that DSS is still in its development phase and has not been fully commissioned.

"An evaluation committee thus reviewed it and assessed that its data and accuracy was not in line with the terms of reference set for the model. It was also seen that some of the data or the emissions inventory being used was fairly old," said the official, adding that a timeline for resuming updates remains uncertain.