With AQI at 399, Faridabad among most polluted cities in Haryana

Faridabad, November 15

With the AQI touching 399 this evenings, Faridabad was among the most polluted cities in state today.

Fifteen other cities in Haryana also recorded ‘very poor’ AQI today, according to the details uploaded by the CPCB.

The PM2.5 level which was recorded at 370 at 9 am on Wednesday morning shot up to 399 at 5 pm on Tuesday. The highest level of 413 was recorded in Sector 16-A here this evening. It was 388 and 395, respectively, in Sector 11 and NIT zone here. This is perhaps the eight time in the month when the AQI has hovered in the ‘severe’ category (400 or more).

Steps under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Stage 3 and 4 by the CAQM (Commission for Air Quality Management) have already been imposed.

Violations, including dusty road conditions, burning of waste in the open, dumping and improper disposal of garbage and release of untreated effluents of certain polluting units like the stone crushers, are claimed to be prominent factors behind the problem, according to sources in the district administration.

Burning of garbage, industrial waste and lack of cleanliness in the city has added to pollution woes, alleged Varun Sheokand, a resident. He said that swift action against the offenders is missing on the ground.

Besides Faridabad, 15 other cities in the state including Manesar, Dharuhera, Sonepat, Rohtak, Narnaul, Bahadurgarh, Bhiwani, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad, Kaithal and Kurukshetra also recorded a ‘very poor’ AQI (between 328 and 375) today, according to the details uploaded by the CPCB on Sameer app.

“The impact of the flow of poor air caused by the farm fires and the drop in day and night temperatures cannot also be ruled out for the smoggy conditions,” said Rakesh Gautam, an official.

He added that measures were in place to contain the problem as per the instructions of the government and the CAQM.