Air quality levels on Deepavali dropped to the ‘very poor’ category in parts of Chennai, as per an analysis by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB).
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Of the seven locations where TNPCB monitored the impact of firecrackers, Valasaravakkam and Nungambakkam recorded the highest air pollution level with the air quality index (AQI) touching 365 and 364 respectively, followed by Sowcarpet (336), T.Nagar (306), Triplicane (253), Tiruvottiyur (227), and Besant Nagar (207).
According to the National Air Monitoring Programme’s AQI scale, the air quality check between 51 and 100 is ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 and 450 ‘severe’.
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The Board attributed the dip in air quality to the large number of people indulging in bursting of firecrackers, mainly night crackers and sky shots, and high relative humidity and low wind speed in Chennai. “The weather condition is not conducive for the effective dispersion of the smoke emanated from the bursting of crackers,” it said in a release.
Since the morning of Deepavali, the air quality steadily deteriorated from ‘moderately polluted’ to ‘poor’ and ‘very poor’, placing Chennai in the same category as Delhi. An advisory issued by the Chennai Police and the TNPCB said crackers should be burst only between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. and between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. However, residents continued to burst crackers beyond the specified timings, adding to the pollution that resulted in a visible toxic haze in the sky on Monday.
According to TNPCB, the air quality during Deepavali was better than last year as the AQI reduced by 40% this year compared to 2022. Rainfall on Tuesday is expected to clear up the air, said an official.