Staff Reporter
Guwahati: A list of places with the Air Quality Index in terms of ‘Good Days’ and ‘Bad Days’ in 2023 includes three places in Assam. The worst in terms of the number of bad days is Byrnihat near Guwahati. However, two other towns in Assam, Silchar and Sivasagar, feature in the list with more good days in the year.
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has prepared a country-wide report after conducting analysis, listing the 10 cities with the most bad days in terms of the Air Quality Index (AQI) and 40 with more good days. Assam’s Byrnihat had the most bad days in AQI last year, with 187 bad days out of 277 days analysed. This works out to 67.51% of bad days in 2023.
According to the analysis of 277 days in Byrnihat, a total of 103 days had a ‘poor’ AQI, 74 days had ‘very poor’ and 10 days had the AQI in the ‘severe’ category. Only 90 days recorded a ‘good’ AQI.
However, Sivasagar in Assam had the most ‘good days’ in that year. According to the ministry’s analysis, Sivasagar had a total of 348 good days in the year. Of the 348 days, 250 recorded AQI in the ‘good’ category and the remaining 98 in the ‘satisfactory’ category. In Barak Valley’s Silchar town, the AQI analysis of 340 days showed all the days to be ‘good days.’ Of the 340 days, 269 were included in the ‘good days’ category, and the remaining 71 days were recorded in the ‘satisfactory’ category. Of the days analysed in both towns, there was no instance of a ‘bad day.’
The central government provides funds under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). Under this programme, Assam utilised Rs 1.26 crore in FY 2021-22, Rs 10.18 crore in 2022-23, and Rs 16.84 crore in 2023-24.
It should be mentioned here that Byrnihat is located on the Assam-Meghalaya border. A number of industries are located in the area, including cement factories, smelting factories, and others. This is likely to be the prime reason for the bad AQI recorded in 2023. As it is an area located on the interstate border, it is the responsibility of both Assam and Meghalaya to minimise the pollution.
Also Read: Assam: Guwahati’s Air Pollution Critical; AQI Level is 114
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