Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad witness drop in air quality
Due to the presence of various weather systems, the city has experienced good-quality air during the monsoon period between June and September
Dry weather and drop in mercury have given rise to pollution with the air quality index rising from 75 on October 23 to 133 within 48 hours till Friday morning on October 25, before falling to 123 by evening in Pune district. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast that the city will continue to experience dry weather for the next 2-3 days and from October 28 onwards another system seems to be approaching due to which Pune may experience light rainfall from October 28 onwards.
Due to the presence of various weather systems, the city has experienced good-quality air during the monsoon period between June and September. In October too, due to the cloudy weather and regular rainfall, the air quality was reported at a satisfactory level by SAFAR-IITM. However, for the last two days, the city has experienced dry weather conditions, apart from a significant drop in temperature especially at nighttime temperature.
As per the IMD data, the night temperature in Pune city on October 24 was recorded as 19.3 degrees Celsius. The minimum or the nighttime and the Maximum temperature on October 23 was recorded as 21.7 and 33.7 degrees Celsius respectively.
With this drop in temperature, the city experienced fog in the morning and the air quality also dropped in many areas. As per the SAFAR IITM data, the highest AQI was reported in the Katraj dairy area as 201 on October 25 at 7 pm. In nearly 8 areas, the air quality Index was reported over 100, indicating a moderate category of air quality. The prolonged exposure to such air may cause breathing discomfort to the citizens as per the SAFAR_IITM advisory.
SD Sanap, senior meteorologist, IMD, Pune said, “Currently there is no strong weather system active over Pune and the district is experiencing dry weather. Moreover, there is a decreasing trend in temperature especially during nighttime. In such cases, fog starts forming in the atmosphere and that ultimately impacts visibility. Fog formation is common during October end. This condition will continue for the next 48 hours, and after that, due to the approaching system, the city is likely to witness cloudy weather and light rainfall again even on the initial days of the Diwali festival.”