Greater Noida most polluted in country for second day in row; AQI reaches 490

The air quality index (AQI) reading for Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh peaked at 490 on Saturday, surpassing Delhi’s 415 for the second consecutive day.

Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh remained country’s most polluted city for the second day in a row on Saturday with an air quality index (AQI) reading of 490 surpassing Delhi which recorded 415, according to the Central Pollution Control Board. On Friday, Greater Noida had recorded an AQI of 494.

The city skyline is enveloped by smog and fog in New Delhi, on Saturday. (AP)

Noida recorded the AQI of 408 as per the 4 pm bulletin of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). An AQI level between zero and 50 is considered “good”, 51-100 “satisfactory”, 101-200 “moderate”, 201-300 “poor”, 301-400 “very poor” and 401-500 is “severe”.

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Among four other cities of Uttar Pradesh which recorded “very poor” AQI, Ghaziabad was on top with 394, followed by Meerut 342, Bulandshahr 319, and Hapur 313. Khurja with AQI reading of 253, Muzaffarnagar 238, Firozabad 207 and Baghpat 205 recorded “poor air” quality.

Meanwhile, Lucknow recorded ‘moderate’ AQI of 186 on Saturday. In Lucknow, Lalbagh area was the most polluted as per the six live monitoring stations set up by Pollution Control Board in six areas of the state capital. Lalbagh recorded an average AQI of 264, Talkatora 222 and Kendriya Vidyalaya area 205.