Air quality in Gujarat equivalent to smoking 2 cigarettes a day

Updated: Nov 20th, 2024


The onset of winter in Gujarat has brought with it deteriorating air quality. While the condition in the state is not as bad as Delhi’s 400+ Air Quality Index (AQI), Gujarat isn’t too far behind — and it seems to be catching up quickly.

On November 19, Surat’s AQI stood at 263 — that’s as bad for your lungs as smoking two cigarettes a day. Ahmedabad was slightly better on November 20, with an AQI of 153 with PM 2.5 (particulate matter) 59.1  µg/m³ according to IQAir data – which is dubbed as ‘unhealthy’ as per World Health Organization (WHO).

Experts say that an AQI between 201 and 300 is considered ‘poor’, and prolonged exposure can cause breathing problems. If the AQI crosses 400, even healthy individuals can be affected.

Pollution in Gujarat 

City/AreaPollution Level
Surat263
Ankleshwar182
Ahmedabad129
Vatva118
Gandhinagar113

Meanwhile, Delhiites’ lungs are seeing as much damage as they would from 50 cigarettes a day, without even having to spark a flame. The national capital and its environs has been grappling with an overall 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) as high as 471 at 1 pm on November 19 — a whopping 60% more than the WHO guidelines.

To expand the cigarette analogy, people in Haryana are involuntarily smoking 29 cigarettes a day, while those in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are puffing on 10 and 9.5, respectively.  Odisha, Bengal, and Rajasthan come in behind at 7.5 cigarettes a day.

Air quality standards

AQI (Air Quality Index) Condition
0-50 Good
51-100 Satisfactory
101-200 Moderate
201-300 Poor
301-400 Very Poor
401-500 Severe

Also read:

Delhi chokes under ‘severe plus’ air quality, rail service disrupted, SC hears plea

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