Mumbai residents, while enjoying a recent spell of pleasantly cool mornings, are now grappling with a significant decline in air quality. The city's overall Air Quality Index (AQI) took a sharp turn for the worse on Sunday, rising to 136, marking a worrying trend from the more satisfactory levels recorded just days earlier.
Sharp Decline in Air Quality
The deterioration has been steady over the past few days. On Christmas Eve, December 24, the city's AQI was a much better 86, categorised as 'satisfactory'. However, by Sunday, it had slipped into the 'moderate' category. Specific areas fared even worse. Mulund recorded the poorest air quality in the city with an AQI of 157, closely followed by the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) at 151, both firmly in the 'moderate' range according to monitoring data.
Cooler Mornings Persist, Further Dip Expected
This air quality slump comes even as the city continues to experience cooler than usual mornings. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that the Santacruz observatory recorded a minimum temperature of 17.2 degrees Celsius, which is close to the normal range for this season. Colaba saw a minimum of 20.4 degrees Celsius, also around the seasonal average. This drop in night temperatures has brought welcomed relief, making mornings and evenings pleasant across the metropolis.
However, daytime conditions have remained relatively warm, with maximum temperatures hovering around 32 degrees Celsius. The IMD's forecast for the coming week indicates that minimum temperatures are likely to dip further, potentially touching around 16 degrees Celsius by January 3. Maximum temperatures are also expected to ease slightly, settling near the 30-degree mark.
Week Ahead: Cloudy Skies and Stable Conditions
Weather officials have predicted cloudy skies over Mumbai for the next few days. The IMD stated that these stable weather conditions are likely to persist as the city transitions into the first week of the new year. This combination of cool, stable weather and worsening air quality presents a contrasting scenario for Mumbaikars, who must now balance enjoying the cooler climate with concerns over breathing polluted air.
The simultaneous occurrence of dipping mercury and rising pollution levels highlights the complex environmental challenges facing the financial capital, especially during the winter months when atmospheric conditions often trap pollutants closer to the ground.
