Chandigarh: AQI soaring again after brief respite

The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) restrictions which the Chandigarh Pollution Control Committee (CPCC) had started in the city last month are still in effect

After a brief improvement over the past week, Chandigarh’s Air Quality Index (AQI) has slipped back into the “poor” category due to rising pollutants in the air.

The situation was worst in the southern parts of Chandigarh, with the AQI at 8 pm soaring to 287 at the CAAQMS in Sector 53 and 239 at the CAAQMS in Sector 22, both in the poor category. (HT File)

According to the daily AQI bulletin released by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the city’s AQI increased from 215 on Saturday to 240 on Sunday, after staying in the moderate range (101-200) for three consecutive days.

Wednesday’s AQI of 167 was lowest since the start of the month, when bursting of firecrackers on Diwali night, combined with stubble burning in neighbouring Punjab and Haryana, had caused pollution levels to soar.

The daily AQI is calculated by taking the average of all three Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) at 4 pm.

The city’s Sunday reading of 240 was close to Delhi, where the value was 285.

The situation was worst in the southern parts of the city, with the AQI at 8 pm soaring to 287 at the CAAQMS in Sector 53 and 239 at the CAAQMS in Sector 22, both in the poor category.

While the AQI had remained moderate at the CAAQMS in Sector 25 earlier, on Sunday it went up to 212 here as well.

An AQI between 201-300 falls in the poor bracket and can cause breathing discomfort to most people on prolonged exposure.

Speaking about the rise, India Meteorological Department (IMD) director Surender Paul said, “While temperature inversion due to falling temperature is one reason behind worsening AQI, there is also a slight shift in the wind pattern of the region. A Western Disturbance (WD) is currently active in the region, which has slightly reduced the wind speeds. Another WD will arrive around December 4, again affecting the wind speeds. But thereon, air quality is likely to improve.”

While a cyclonic storm Fengal is also active in the Bay of Bengal, Paul said it didn’t have an effect over this region as cyclone Dana had last month. None of these weather systems were however likely to bring any rain to the city. Chandigarh has received no rain for over two months now.

The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) restrictions which the Chandigarh Pollution Control Committee (CPCC) had started in the city last month are still in effect. Member secretary of CPCC, TC Nautiyal said till the AQI of the city continued to remain vulnerable, the measures will remain in place.

These include directions to the municipal corporation (MC) to ensure sprinkling of roads at night time to reduce road dust. There should be no road sweeping without sprinkling of water. Also, anti-smog guns for dust collected on trees around roads are being used regularly, he said. The use of diesel generator sets also continues to remain banned without the permission of the CPCC.

Meanwhile, the maximum temperature fell from 26.7°C on Saturday to 26.5°C on Sunday, 1.2 degree above normal. On the other hand, the minimum temperature rose from 9.3°C on Saturday to 9.9°C on Sunday, 1 degree below normal. Over the next three days, the maximum temperature will remain between 27°C and 28°C, and the minimum temperature between 9°C and 10°C.