Mumbai’s air quality showed a slight improvement on Wednesday as it fell into ‘very poor’ category from ‘severe’ yesterday. The city experienced the worse air quality in a decade on Tuesday with air quality index (AQI) 350, which was worse than Delhi’s 249, according to the System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR).
Delhi’s AQI fell under ‘severe’ category at 407, as of 8 am on Wednesday. In Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, the air quality was at 285, which comes in ‘poor’ category, as per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Air Quality Index is a yardstick used to measure the quality of air in a particular area. It is measured from 0 to 500. A higher AQI indicates greater level of pollutants in the air. According to the India Meteorological Department, dust has worsened the city’s air quality.
The dust from the Middle East has caused the deterioration of air quality in Mumbai and neighbouring areas, said Jayanta Sarkar, head of the IMD’s Regional Meteorological Centre in Mumbai. However, the AQI is improving. In some places, the AQI could be higher due to local factors, Sarkar said.
Mumbai’s proximity to the coast could help in dispersing the pollution faster due to strong breeze from across the sea, experts say. But the dust storms, couple with moisture, local emissions and cold air, had forced smoke and dust to hang in the air, a Times of India report said.
The Mazagaon air monitoring station recorded AQI 454, which comes under the severe category, while Deonar and Navy Nagar-Colaba stations recorded AQI 324, which is categorised as very poor, an official said. Navi Mumbai and Kalyan, the satellite cities of Mumbai, have recorded AQI 262 and 239 respectively, falling under poor category, while the Thane region was moderately polluted with AQI 153, Sarkar said.
Light rainfall and winds have also led to an unusually cold weather in the city. Earlier this month, Mumbai had experienced the season’s coldest morning with temperature dropping to 13.2 degrees Celsius.
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