Air pollution stayed severe across Rajasthan for a second straight day on Tuesday, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) remaining above 200 in several cities days after Diwali, according to data released by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Sri Ganganagar recorded the state's highest AQI at 272, in the 'very poor' category, followed by Alwar at 270 and Bikaner at 259.

Source: IANS via AsiaPost

272Sri Ganganagar AQI — state's highest
270Alwar AQI
259Bikaner AQI
230Jaipur, Mansarovar — city's highest locality reading

Hanumangarh recorded 248, Bhiwadi 246, Churu 242, Chittorgarh 240, Kota 218 and Bharatpur 201, the CPCB figures showed — meaning most monitored cities in the state stayed in the 'poor' or 'very poor' bands with little improvement since the festival. A day earlier, on Monday morning, Sri Ganganagar had peaked even higher at 359 in the immediate post-Diwali spike.

Source: NationPress

In the state capital Jaipur, locality-wise readings showed Mansarovar at 230, the Police Commissionerate area at 228 and Shastri Nagar at 221. Adarsh Nagar (163), Murlipura (162) and Sitapura (157) were lower but still well above healthy levels, and the city has registered no significant improvement since Diwali.

Source: IANS via AsiaPost

Under India's official classification, an AQI between 201 and 300 is 'poor' and 301 to 400 is 'very poor'; health advisories in such conditions urge children, older people and those with respiratory illness to limit prolonged outdoor exertion. Reporting on the continuing smog has pointed to a mix of firecracker smoke, vehicle emissions, industrial emissions, construction activity and road dust keeping pollution trapped, with no sustained improvement expected until weather conditions change.