Serious health concern in Odisha as six towns match New Delhi’s ‘Poor Air Quality’

Odisha has once again emerged as one of the most polluted states in India, standing at par with the national capital, New Delhi, in air quality index (AQI) on Sunday.

Also Read: 3 Odisha towns among India’s five most polluted places today, surpass Delhi in AQI

Six places from the State featured among the country’s polluted urban centres under the ‘poor’ category.

Angul topped the list, recording an alarming AQI of 300, while Cuttack registered 259 and Balasore 220, placing them in the ‘poor’ category. The three other places falling under the same category are Baripada with 213 AQI, followed by Byasanagar (211) and Keonjhar (205).

In comparison, New Delhi’s AQI was 265 today, significantly lower than Odisha’s Angul. Other places in the State witnessed slightly better air quality. Bhubaneswar witnessed an AQI value of 160 (‘moderate’ category), and the major pollutant found was O3.

Major pollutants found in the six places are – Angul (O3), Cuttack (O3), Balasore (PM2.5), Baripada (PM2.5), Byasanagar (O3), and Keonjhar (PM2.5).

It is pertinent to mention here that breathing clean air lessens the possibility of stroke, heart attack, cardiac arrest, lung cancer, as well as chronic and acute respiratory ailments such as asthma. Lower levels of air pollution are better for heart and respiratory health, both in the long and short terms.

Earlier in December last year, Odisha had once again emerged as one of the most polluted states in India, surpassing even New Delhi in AQI. As of 11.00 AM, three towns in the State had featured among the country’s five most polluted urban centres.