Gurugram: Despite dip in air quality, city enjoys lest-polluted air in NCR

Though Gurugram’s air quality dipped from Monday’s ‘good’, 31 on the Central Pollution Control Board’s air quality index (AQI) bulletin, to ‘satisfactory’ (65) on

Though Gurugram’s air quality dipped from Monday’s ‘good’, 31 on the Central Pollution Control Board’s air quality index (AQI) bulletin, to ‘satisfactory’ (65) on Wednesday, the city enjoyed the least-polluted air in the entire national capital region (NCR).

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While Delhi’s AQI remained at a daily average of 90, Ghaziabad scored 82 and Noida 102 (moderate), on Wednesday. Gurugram was not a part of the CPCB bulletin on Tuesday due to a faulty monitor.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast, the city is expected to enjoy light to moderate rain on Thursday, which will further lower the pollution level. However, according to the early air quality warning system for NCR, “The air quality is likely to deteriorate marginally on 04.10.2019 and may remain in the satisfactory to lower end of moderate category.”

On October 2 last year, Gurugram had recorded an AQI of 217 (poor). Experts and officials attributed the change in trend to favourable meteorological conditions, such as higher humidity and warmer temperatures, which has also led to a spike in atmospheric ozone. Peaking at 145ug/m3, ozone was recorded as one of the day’s prominent pollutants.

“Temperatures are higher than usual for this time of the year, hence certain pockets in NCR might see spikes in ozone, which is caused by reactions of primary pollutants, such as vehicular emissions, in the air,” said a senior scientist at the CPCB’s air quality lab in Delhi.

Pollutants are expected to remain at a mixing height of about 2,000 to 2,400 metres over the next couple of days, which is atypical for winter months when pollutants settle as low at 100 metres above the ground.

“It is not typical to have good and satisfactory air quality this late in the year. However, Gurugram and the NCR, as a whole, are seeing a lingering monsoon. The next few days will be unpredictable as atmospheric conditions are in a state of flux, and air quality will depend a lot on the level of humidity, precipitation and temperature,” city-based air quality scientist Sachin Panwar said.