Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) Chief Engineer Karunesh Garg said that it is good thing that Amritsar’s AQI is recorded good on the Diwali eve. (Golden Temple Amritsar/Representational)
Ahead of Diwali, the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Amritsar was recorded ‘good’ on Tuesday. According to data available at Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) website at 4 pm on Tuesday, Amritsar’s AQI was recorded ‘good’ with the presence of just 46 Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) per cubic meter (mg/cm).
RSPM between 0-55 /cubic meter (mg/cm) in the air is considered to be good quality air and it is permissible/satisfactory upto 100 RSPM. The moderate limit of AQI is between 101 to 220 RSPM.
Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) Chief Engineer Karunesh Garg said that it is good thing that Amritsar’s AQI is recorded good on the Diwali eve.
“This is the result of people’s sensitivity towards the environment. We have been educating farmers, students to stay away from stubble burning and bursting crackers respectively,” he said adding that he hopes it would not be polluted much during on the festival day.
On last Saturday, the AQI of Amritsar was recorded as ‘Moderate’. The AQI of all the other major cities of the state including Jalandhar, Bathinda, Patiala, Mandi Gobindgarh, Ludhiana and Khanna fell under moderate category on the eve of Diwali.
While on Monday Ludhiana’s AQI was recorded at 91, which is satisfactory level, on Tuesday it was at 126.
Meanwhile, this year Punjab has recorded 30,221 cases of field fires till Tuesday, against 37,428 on the same date last year.