E-Paper
Pune air quality dips to ‘poor’; three stations cross 300 AQI mark
Data from the Central Pollution Control Board’s Sameer App showed the citywide AQI at 213 around 9pm
Pune’s air quality deteriorated sharply on Thursday, slipping into the ‘poor’ category as pollution levels spiked across the city. Three key monitoring stations — Shivajinagar, Lohegaon and Bhumkar Nagar—recorded Air Quality Index (AQI) values above 300, placing them in the ‘very poor’ zone.
Data from the Central Pollution Control Board’s Sameer App showed the citywide AQI at 213 around 9pm. This is the second such spike in the first week of December; on December 1, Pune had logged an AQI of 202. According to data, Bhumkar Nagar AQI at 309, MHADA Colony, Lohegaon, AQI at 304 and Shivajinagar AQi at 311.
Despite an unusually cold November, the city had largely managed to stay in the ‘moderate’ range. But the onset of December has triggered a sharp rise in pollution levels.
Sachin Ghude, head of the Metropolitan Air Quality and Weather Forecasting Services (MAQWS) at IITM, attributed the worsening air to a mix of falling temperatures, stagnant winds and heavy emissions from construction and traffic.
“The temperature has dropped and ventilation is very poor as the air becomes thick and static. Construction work and traffic emissions are adding to the load. These factors together are pushing AQI upward,” he said.
He added that MAQWS routinely shares pollution data with civic and state agencies, and “it is up to the authorities to act when levels surge.”
Attempts to reach Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) sub-regional officer Kartik Langote for comment were unsuccessful.
Other stations in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad also showed elevated AQI values, though lower than the worst-hit pockets. Experts warn that with winter deepening, more spikes are likely unless measures such as dust control, traffic management and curbs on waste burning are enforced effectively.
Bad air
(Figures at 9pm)
Bhumkar Nagar 309 AQi
MHADA Colony, Lohegaon 304 AQI
Shivajinagar 311 AQI
Wakad 224
Hadapsar164 AQI
Katraj Dairy 128 AQI
Pashan 173 AQI
Savitribai Phule Pune University 153 AQI
Nigdi 174 AQI
