Hyderabad’s air hit an average AQI of 509 on Deepavali night; Begumpet touched 828

Hyderabad’s average air quality index (AQI) reached 509, in the hazardous range, at about 9.30 p.m. on Deepavali night, 8 November. It stayed there until about 3 a.m. on 9 November, Siasat reported, citing data from the private monitoring network aqi.in.

More than 50 areas of the city crossed the hazardous mark. The highest reading was 828, near the Prakash Nagar Metro station in Begumpet, where the index doubled from 414 in 15 minutes, the report said.

How fast it rose

From 3 p.m. on 7 November, the city’s AQI stayed between 150 and 180. Between 7.30 p.m. and 8.30 p.m. on Deepavali, it jumped from 176 to 321, according to the aqi.in data.

Kukatpally, Serilingampally, Banjara Hills, Gachibowli, Hafeezpet and Defence Colony stayed above 500 through the night. Defence Colony reached 685 at 11.30 p.m. Noise reached 89.6 decibels at 9.30 p.m.

What the numbers mean

On India’s AQI scale, readings from 0 to 50 are good and anything above 400 is severe. Private networks such as aqi.in use their own sensors and scales, so their readings can differ from those of the Central Pollution Control Board’s official stations.

Fine particles from firecrackers can irritate the lungs and worsen asthma and heart conditions. People with breathing problems, children and older people are most at risk.

What’s next

The Telangana State Pollution Control Board has not yet published its official readings for the festival nights.