Chandigarh: The city has made its way onto the list of the five most polluted cities in India, with a recorded Air Quality Index (AQI) of 372, classified under the ‘very poor’ category as of 4 pm, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) on Wednesday.
The list includes Delhi with an AQI of 418 in the ‘severe’ category, ranking first, followed by Hajipur with an AQI of 417 in the ‘severe’ category, Saharsa with an AQI of 379 in the ‘very poor’ category, Bhiwani with an AQI of 375 in the ‘very poor’ category, and Chandigarh, ranking fifth, as of 4 pm, as reported by the CPCB.
Additionally, on the top ten list of most polluted cities in India, Panipat (AQI 370, ‘very poor’ category), Greater Noida (AQI 364, ‘very poor’ category), Noida (AQI 359, ‘very poor’ category), Bhiwadi and Ghaziabad (AQI 350, ‘very poor’ category), and Baddi and Baghpat (AQI 344, ‘very poor’ category) have also made the list.
For the past few days, Chandigarh’s Air Quality Index (AQI) has been recorded in the ‘very poor’ category. On Tuesday, the AQI was recorded at 343, falling under the ‘very poor’ category, according to the CPCB. Then, today also the city’s AQI was recorded in ‘very poor’ category.
According to the AQI bulletin issued by the CPCB on Sunday (October 10), Chandigarh’s AQI stood at 339, compared to Delhi’s index of 334. CPCB data showed that on Sunday at 10 am, AQI levels at monitoring stations in Sector 22 and Sector 53 were recorded at 353 and 349 micrograms per cubic meter, respectively. Later, at 7 pm, AQI levels remained ‘very poor,’ with Sector 22 at 347, Sector 25 at 323, and Sector 53 at 345. For reference, a reading between 301 and 400 is classified as ‘very poor,’ while readings between 201-300 are ‘poor,’ and those above 400 are ‘severe.’
