Mumbai's air quality has deteriorated over the past couple of days, and some areas in the city have registered an AQI worse than the national capital Delhi. On Saturday morning, Mumbai witnessed a ‘poor’ air quality, with various stations having an AQI of 200, the Central Pollution Control Board said.

According to recent data, the Bandra station had poor quality with an AQI of 210 alongside Malad West station, which recorded an AQI of 229. The Borivali East station recorded moderate air quality with an AQI of 144 while on the other hand, Chakala- Andheri East station recorded an AQI of 246, which is considered poor. At the Worli station, the AQI was 144, which is moderate, but at the Mazgaon station, the AQI rose significantly to 207.

According to a report in Hindustan Times, the Ozone (O3) level in certain areas, including Malad at 223, Colaba at 134, Bhandup at 186 and Navi Mumbai with 145, has been high. The director of SAFAR, BS Murthy said, “Ozone levels become high typically when an increase in other pollutants, like nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide interact with solar radiation due to high temperatures.”

The temperatures in Mumbai have also been high at 35.9 degrees Celsius in Santacruz and 34.5 degrees Celsius in Colaba.

Meanwhile, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a warning on October 21 that it would halt construction activities at all sites, including private and government projects if the dust and pollution control measures were not implemented. The BMC release also mentioned that the standard operating procedures or guidelines to ensure better air quality will be issued by October 23.

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Iqbal Singh Chahal, the municipal commissioner of BMC, met various stakeholders and said the construction was underway at around 6,000 sites in the city, reported PTI. To halt the ongoing construction work, Chahal also proposed several other measures to control the rising concern around Mumbai’s AQI. He suggested the construction sites be enclosed with 35-foot-high iron sheet barriers and covered the under-construction buildings with green cloth or jute sheets.

Apart from this, the civic body plans to operate anti-smog guns in several areas, and the experts from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board and BMC will examine the pollution levels caused by refineries in the city.

(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)