Mumbai pollution update: City’s bad air quality continues; AQI at 309 on Friday

Mumbai: The Air Quality Index (AQI) of Mumbai witnessed a slight drop during the morning hours on Friday, however, it shot up again by evening to 309, putting it in the ‘very poor’ category, which was again higher than Delhi (249) two days in a row.

The higher the AQI, the greater level of health concerns. The city also woke up to a colder morning on Friday with a minimum temperature of 18.6 degrees Celcius.

According to experts, the bad air quality is attributed to the weak winds blowing over the city because of which the pollutants remain in the atmospheric level and do not rise above it.

There is an anticyclonic circulation which has resulted in weak winds. Experts say it’s a rare phenomenon and the weather system is likely to experience a change in the coming week.

Mumbai weather

Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted unseasonal rainfall next week, which may help in reducing the deteriorating air quality in the city.

On Friday, the major regions in the city that were responsible for the rise in AQI included Mazagaon(332),and Chembur (316) which were in the 'very poor' category.

An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.

On Friday, Mumbai witnessed an average minimum temperature of 18.6 degrees Celsius and a maximum of 33.1 degrees Celsius, with relative humidity between 70% to 80%.