Mumbai’s AQI marginally improves after plummeting to ‘poor’ category following Diwali

In 2023, Mumbai recorded an average AQI of 189 on the day after Diwali.

Meanwhile, the CPCB dashboard further showed that even though the city’s average AQI improved, multiple pockets continued to record poor air. Sewri recorded the worst AQI of 242, followed by 235 at Malad, 219 at BKC, 213 at Bandra East and 204 at Byculla.

AQI readings are classified as follows: 0-50 is good, 51-100 is satisfactory, 101-200 is moderate, 201-300 is poor, 301-400 is very poor, and above 400 is severe.

Dr Gufran Beig, chair-professor of the National Institute of Advance Sciences (NIAS), said Mumbai’s AQI has marginally improved owing to the city’s wind reversal pattern.

“At present, the process of wind reversal is going on, which means that wind from the sea is blowing towards the land, which is cleaning the suspended particulate matters from the air, resulting in marginal improvement of AQI,” Beig told Express.

“Also, for the past few days, Mumbai has been recording maximum temperature above normal levels. Generally, when the temperature increases, the windspeed also increases. This factor has also played a part in improving the air. A similar pattern is also noticed in Delhi. However, this is not a long-term solution as AQI may get worse with temperature dropping during the upcoming winter season,” he added.