Jamshedpur, Oct. 28: The Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board (JPCB) plans to install gadgets to measure the presence of “respirable particulate matters” (RPM) in the air.

According to JPCB sources, the gadgets would be installed at two air pollution monitoring stations located in Bistupur and Golmuri. Each gadget would cost about Rs 75,000. “At present, only three harmful substances present in the environment, including suspended particulate matters (SPM), sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide were measured with the obsolete technology available at the Jamshedpur regional office,” they said. “The presence of one of the more harmful pollutants, which causes bronchitis and asthma, will also be monitored,” they added.

They said the new instrument, known as respirable particulate matter sampler (RPMS), would monitor the presence of particles that are less than 10 micron in size.

JSPCB regional officer Manikant Prasad said, in the absence of RPMS, it is impossible to monitor the presence of particles that were less than 10 micron. The particles are known respirable particulate matter because they would be inhaled inside the lungs due to their small size. “Once they get inside, they damage the walls of the lungs,” he said.

“The sharp edge of the matter, especially silica, can penetrate walls of the lungs and create a hole in it,” he said.

Prasad said, according to the pollution control act, the permissible limit for SPM in air is 120 micro gram per meter cube (MGPMC) in both industrial and housing areas.