Nagpur air quality slips into poor category

Nagpur: Air quality in Nagpur deteriorated sharply on Sunday, slipping into the ‘poor' category as all 4 monitoring stations recorded a spike in fine particulate matter (PM2.5), raising concerns over respiratory health.Data from the city's air quality monitoring network showed Mahal as the most polluted pocket, followed by General Post Office (GPO), Ram Nagar, and Ambazari. Doctors said the rise in pollution levels has already begun reflecting in patient patterns, with an increase in complaints of breathlessness, persistent cough, eye irritation and chest discomfort, particularly among children, the elderly and patients with pre-existing respiratory ailments.
Environmental activist Suresh Chopne pointed out that poor air quality persisted for five consecutive days in Mahal, while the other three monitoring stations reported poor levels for two days each. "Nagpur has already replaced Chandrapur as one of the most polluted cities in the state. On Sunday, the city's air quality was worse than the rest of Vidarbha," Chopne said. He attributed the worsening trend to a surge in vehicular numbers, traffic congestion leading to pollutant concentration, and construction dust.The latest deterioration in air quality has been witnessed despite sustained spending on pollution mitigation. A recent RTI reply to activist Jawwad Ahmed revealed that the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) spent over ₹200 crore on air pollution control measures over the past few years. The steps taken by NMC included dust suppression, road development, promotion of electric mobility, greening drives, bio-mining of legacy waste, and expansion of air quality monitoring. However, data from Maharashtra Pollution Control Board stations show that PM2.5 and PM10 levels continue to breach safe limits during winter months, especially in December and January.Dr Sushant Meshram, professor and head of pulmonary medicine at the Super Specialty Hospital, Govt Medical College and Hospital Nagpur, said the hospital saw a rise in pollution-linked cases. "Patients with existing lung diseases, who were in stable condition earlier, are reporting worsening symptoms and seeking medical advice. We are also seeing upper and lower respiratory infections lingering for weeks, with persistent coughs that do not subside even after standard treatment. Air pollution appears to be a significant aggravating factor," he said.