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MUMBAI: Even as India recorded a marginal improvement in air quality in 2025, cities across the country -- including Mumbai -- continue to grapple with pollution levels far exceeding global safety norms, according to the latest World Air Quality Report released in March.India's annual average PM2.5 concentration dipped by 3% to 48.9 µg/m³ in 2025, still nearly ten times higher than the WHO guideline. The country now ranks as the sixth most polluted globally, behind Pakistan, Bangladesh, Tajikis ...Read More >
The National Capital Delhi continued to reel under hazardous air conditions on Tuesday as the city's overall Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 378 at around 7 am, placing it in the 'very poor' category, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The National Capital Delhi continued to reel under hazardous air conditions on Tuesday as the city's overall Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 378 at around 8 am, placing it in the 'very poor' category, according to data from the C ...Read More >
Mumbai: Mumbai's Air Quality Index (AQI) turned severe on Wednesday. Live recording of AQIV showed a reading of 202, which falls in the 'severe' category, even as the carbon monoxide level stood at 302, considered 'good'. The dashboard showed that Mumbai's AQI was 1.01 times higher than in Maharashtra. The overall AQI of Maharashtra was recorded at 181. The AQI record in the city over the last fortnight has remained mostly below average. The minimum AQI recorded was on December 16, at 155 at 2: ...Read More >
New Delhi: With a sharp drop in visibility and haze-obscured skyline on Monday paired with the Air Quality Index touching 498 in the morning, and settling at 427 by the evening, in the hazardous "severe" zone, the national capital Delhi choked under a thick blanket of smog leading to cancellation of over 60 flights and five diverted at Delhi airport due to poor visibility conditions. Delhi airport operator DIAL said in a post on X shortly after 10 am that flight operations are still impacted due ...Read More >
New Delhi, Dec 15 (PTI) A sharp drop in visibility and haze-obscured skyline marked another low for Delhi on Monday as its AQI touched 498 in the morning and settled at 427 by the evening, with air quality in the hazardous "severe" zone. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), 27 monitoring stations across the city recorded "severe" air quality, while 12 stations reported "very poor" levels. Wazirpur recorded the worst air quality among the 40 stations, with an AQI of 475. Not ...Read More >
Even with farm fires at a multi-year low, Delhi-NCR's winter air remains suffocating. For most of October and November, pollution levels hovered between 'very poor' and 'severe', fuelled by a rising "toxic cocktail" of PM2.5, nitrogen dioxide (NO) and carbon monoxide (CO) emitted mainly from vehicles and other local sources. At least 22 air-quality monitoring stations in Delhi recorded carbon monoxide (CO) levels above permissible limits on more than 30 of the 59 days assessed, with Dwarka Sect ...Read More >
Delhi's air quality index (AQI) climbed to an average of 395 on October 21 after Diwali celebrations, placing it in the severe category; PM2.5 levels peaked at 675 µg/m³ on Diwali night. Thirty-six of the city's 38 monitoring stations reported "red zone" readings, marking one of the worst pollution spikes in recent years. By comparison, post-Diwali AQI levels were 328 in 2024, 218 in 2023, and 312 in 2022. The Delhi government is working in collaboration with IIT Kanpur's Department of Aerospac ...Read More >
Air pollution in India is now a serious threat to brains and bodies, not just lungs. Congress demands changes to the National Clean Air Programme. They also want updated air quality standards. Millions of deaths are linked to pollution, including non-communicable diseases. India's pollution levels far exceed global guidelines. This crisis impacts health, society, and the future workforce. The Congress on Sunday said India's air pollution crisis is no longer just a respiratory issue but a full-b ...Read More >
Also Read: Delhi wakes up to a shroud of smog as AQI hits 'very poor' Air pollution accounts for nearly 70 per cent of deaths from COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), about 33 per cent of lung cancer deaths, 25 per cent of cardiovascular (CVD) deaths and 20 per cent of diabetes-related fatalities in India. The invisible menace of PM2.5 -- fine particulate matter measured in micrograms per cubic metre -- is also linked to brain damage and accelerated cognitive decline. Globally, aroun ...Read More >
An analysis of CPCB data showed that post-Diwali, PM 2.5 levels have touched 488 micrograms per cubic metre, the highest in five years and over three times the pre-festival level of 156.6 micrograms per cubic metre. Three out of four households in Delhi-NCR are already experiencing the ill-effects of toxic air, with common complaints ranging from sore throat and cough to burning eyes, headaches and disturbed sleep, according to an online survey by citizen engagement platform LocalCircles. An a ...Read More >
New Delhi, Oct 25 (PTI) Three out of four households in Delhi-NCR are already experiencing the ill-effects of toxic air, with common complaints ranging from sore throat and cough to burning eyes, headaches and disturbed sleep, according to an online survey by citizen engagement platform LocalCircles. An analysis of CPCB data showed that post-Diwali, PM 2.5 levels have touched 488 micrograms per cubic metre, the highest in five years and over three times the pre-festival level of 156.6 microgram ...Read More >
Despite unseasonal rainfall, pollution levels refuse to drop with BKC, Malad, Deonar, all in the 'very poor' AQI category The festive fervour in Mumbai on Tuesday was marred by excessive pollution and smoggy air. As the Diwali festivities continued, the city's Air Quality Index (AQI) plunged deeper into the 'very poor' zone, with thick smog settling over key neighbourhoods stretching from Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) to Byculla and Malad. Despite the unseasonal showers across the city in the eve ...Read More >
Noida: After four consecutive days of very poor air quality, Noida saw a marked improvement due to sustained northwesterly winds, clocking up to 10 to 15 kilometre per hour (kmph) speed, that helped disperse pollutants lingering in the airshed since Diwali. On Thursday, AQI improved from 330 (very poor) the previous day to 282 (poor). The city's air quality index had worsened pre-Diwali as wind speed slowed and temperature dipped on Oct 19. On Diwali, a thick layer of haze blanketed the city -- ...Read More >
The results have also cast serious doubt on the effectiveness of 'green firecrackers', which were introduced to reduce pollution. Despite a sharp 77.5% drop in stubble burning this year, Delhi's air quality plummeted to its worst post-Diwali level in five years on Tuesday morning. The city woke up on Tuesday to a thick blanket of smog, with PM2.5 levels averaging 488 micrograms per cubic metre, nearly 100 times higher than the World Health Organization's safe limit. On Diwali night, readings t ...Read More >
12 Lucknow: The bursting of firecrackers during Diwali celebrations engulfed Lucknow in toxic air. During the live monitoring of air pollution levels, the PM 2.5 and PM 10 concentrations in the city's air reached the hazardous level of 500 micrograms per cubic meter.The city's air quality deteriorated from 'moderate' to 'severe' during Diwali night and post-Diwali celebrations on Tuesday. According to the live air quality monitoring stations' data available on the Central Pollution Control Board ...Read More >
Nagpur: The city's air quality dipped sharply during Diwali celebrations this year, with several localities slipping into the 'very poor' to 'severe' pollution zones between 8pm and 3am on Monday and Tuesday nights, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).Data from Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) revealed that particulate matter concentrations -- both PM2.5 and PM10 -- spiked dramatically in several areas. Ram Nagar and Mahal were the most affected, re ...Read More >
New Delhi: Firecracker emissions may have contributed between 30% and 40% to the city's pollution on Diwali, with calm conditions primarily worsening the impact and delaying recovery, say experts. According to Gufran Beig, founder of System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) and chair professor at National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), a preliminary visual analysis of data indicates that pollution levels rose steeply between 9 pm on Monday and 5 am on Tuesday, wh ...Read More >
New Delhi: In just an hour of firecracker frenzy -- between 9pm and 10pm on Diwali -- the PM2.5 concentration at Nehru Nagar in Lajpat Nagar surged from 679 micrograms per cubic metre to a staggering 1,763µg/m³. This made the southeast Delhi location the most polluted area in the city on Monday night.The peak level was over 29 times the daily national ambient air quality standard of 60 µg/m³ and 118 times World Health Organisation's daily safe guideline. A similar pattern of crackers burst in cl ...Read More >
New Delhi: When the air quality station at RK Puram reached peak PM2.5 levels of 1,476 micrograms per cubic metre around midnight, its real-time hourly data went missing from Delhi Pollution Control Committee's website for five hours. The data was available again from 6am, showing a downward trend at 1,187ug/m3, followed by 1,064ug/m3 at 7am. Experts alleged that several stations of DPCC, Central Pollution Control Board and India Meteorological Department stopped showing hourly data after PM10 a ...Read More >
Bhubaneswar: Air quality in the Capital police station area in the city was the worst post the bursting of crackers during Diwali on Monday night, according to data from the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB). Its air quality index (354) was 354, which corresponds to 'very poor'.At IRC Village in Nayapalli, Palasuni and Unit VIII, the prominent pollutant, particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) exceeded the permissible limits to a huge extent between 7 pm and 10 pm. The permissible limit of PM2 ...Read More >
India's capital New Delhi was shrouded in a thick, toxic haze on Monday as air pollution levels soared to more than 16 times the World Health Organization's recommended daily maximum. New Delhi and its sprawling metropolitan region -- home to more than 30 million people -- are regularly ranked among the world's most polluted capitals, with acrid smog blanketing the skyline each winter. Cooler air traps pollutants close to the ground, creating a deadly mix of emissions from crop burning, factor ...Read More >
New Delhi and its sprawling metropolitan region -- home to more than 30 million people -- are regularly ranked among the world's most polluted capitals, with acrid smog blanketing the skyline each winter. Cooler air traps pollutants close to the ground, creating a deadly mix of emissions from crop burning, factories and heavy traffic. But pollution has also spiked due to days of fireworks set off to mark Diwali, the major Hindu festival of lights, which culminates on Monday night. The Supreme ...Read More >
NEW DELHI, Oct 20 -- India's capital New Delhi was shrouded in a thick, toxic haze today as air pollution levels soared to more than 16 times the World Health Organisation's recommended daily maximum. New Delhi and its sprawling metropolitan region -- home to more than 30 million people -- are regularly ranked among the world's most polluted capitals, with acrid smog blanketing the skyline each winter. Cooler air traps pollutants close to the ground, creating a deadly mix of emissions from cro ...Read More >
Noida: For the second day in a row, Ghaziabad recorded very poor air quality, which was also the worst in the country, even as Noida and Greater Noida breathed marginally better. On Friday, Ghaziabad's AQI was recorded at 306, showing no improvement from 307 logged a day ago. In Loni, located along the Delhi border and home to nearly 450 industrial units, AQI tipped towards the severe range at 350 at 4pm. The area was among the six pollution hotspots -- along with Sahibabad, Raj Nagar Extension, ...Read More >
Noida: The worsening air quality trend continued on Wednesday as Noida's 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) hit 318, breaching the 'very poor' category for the first time this season. This was also the country's worst AQI to be recorded on the day. The last time the city's AQI breached the very poor mark was on Jan 4, when it touched 365.A visible smog layer hung over the region throughout the day, with 7x sectors and areas off the Noida expressway seeing high concentrations of PM2.5 and 10 ...Read More >
Bhopal: Ahead of the Supreme Court hearing from September 23, an all-party meeting was hosted by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday at his official residence, where a formal resolution to ensure the full 27% reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) has been unanimously adopted, marking a decisive shift in the state's legal and administrative posture. Backed by all major parties, the resolution affirms that the remaining 13% of the quota, on top of the 14% already impleme ...Read More >
New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) Residents of 130 cities covered under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) could see their life expectancy increase by two years compared to 2017 if India achieves its revised target of a 40 per cent reduction in particulate pollution by 2026, a new report said on Thursday. Launched in 2019, NCAP aimed to cut 2017 particulate pollution levels in 130 highly polluted cities by 20-30 per cent by 2024. In 2022, the government revised the target to a 40 per cent reduction ...Read More >
NEW DELHI, July 12 (Reuters) - India has reversed a decade-old mandate to install $30 billion worth of clean-air equipment, easing sulphur emission rules for most coal-fired power plants, a government order said. Reuters in December reported the government was reviewing 2015 norms that required nearly 540 coal-based power units to install flue-gas desulphurisation (FGD) systems that remove sulphur from the plants' exhaust gases in phases starting in 2027. The federal environment ministry late ...Read More >
New Delhi, July 13 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has relaxed the requirement for mandatory installation of flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) systems at most coal-based thermal power plants, marking a move towards differentiated compliance based on proximity to urban populations and the sulphur content of the coal used. The new framework, finalised after extensive deliberations and multiple independent studies, will restrict FGD mandates only to plants loc ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jul 13 (PTI) The government's move to ease sulphur emission rules for most coal-fired power plants strikes a delicate balance between costs, climate and compliance and is expected to cut electricity costs by 25-30 paise per unit, officials said on Sunday. In a gazette notification, the government has restricted the 2015 mandate of installing flue-gas desulphurisation (FGD) systems that remove sulphur from a power plants' exhaust gases, only to plants located within 10 kilometres of c ...Read More >
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