‘We cannot breathe our air anymore’: Pune residents fume as AQI hits 432 after Diwali

Fireworks across Pune city to celebrate Diwali led to a rise in air pollution (Express photo by Pavan Khengre).

Pune experienced exceptionally severe air pollution early Monday morning, driven primarily by firecracker emissions on Diwali. The citywide Air Quality Index (AQI) reached 432, placing it in the ‘severe’ category.

Peak PM₂.₅ concentrations neared 1,000 µg/m³ at select monitoring stations, while the citywide average PM₂.₅ concentration surged to about 800 µg/m³, marking one of the most extreme pollution spikes recorded in Pune, surpassing last year’s peak of 600 µg/m³.

The air quality forecasting system, developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, predicted the sharp decline, forecasting PM₂.₅ levels above 400 µg/m³ ahead of the event.

Dr Sachin Ghude, scientist and in-charge of the Air Quality Warning and Integrated Decision Support System for Emissions (AIRWISE) at IITM, warned that continued firecracker bursting on Monday will push air quality levels further down from ‘poor’ to ‘severe’ into early Tuesday. PM₂.₅ levels could spike near 400 µg/m³ with the AQI hovering between 300 and 320 on Tuesday morning, according to Dr Ghude.

IITM scientists said the episode underscores the severe impact of firecracker emissions on urban air while showcasing the AIRWISE system’s potential to provide actionable early warnings for extreme pollution events.

Environmental advocates and citizen groups across Pune have raised alarms over the hazardous pollution levels. Shweta Vernekar of the local environmental group Parisar highlighted that PM₂.₅ remains the dominant and most hazardous pollutant for human health. Across the city, activists documented degraded visibility in their neighbourhoods via the collective ‘Chalo PMC’ group.

Highlighting the shrinking count of ‘good air’ days in Pune, civic activist Ameet Singh said that citizens have a fundamental right to transparent pollution data. “Clearly, as per all the data provided, we cannot breathe our air anymore. So what Diwali are we celebrating? The colour is smog white.”