Ludhiana records gradual improvement in air quality

In the past four years, the pollution levels in terms of the Air Quality Index (AQI) have come down in Ludhiana, the industrial hub of Punjab, and it has certainly provided a much-needed respite to city residents.

The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has witnessed the change for good and has attributed this improvement to a host of factors, including easing out of traffic bottlenecks at several places, stringent action against industry norms violations and raising awareness at different levels. Although, there are still a few points where traffic congestion aggravates air pollution. Besides, the direction of the wind, amount of rainfall, overall atmosphere, there are several factors, which increase or decrease the AQI.

PPCB Chief Engineer RK Ratra said he was closely monitoring the air quality of Ludhiana. He quoted the average yearly AQI levels of the city. In 2022 it was 133, in 2023 it touched 135, while in 2024 it fell to 121 and till April 21 this year the average AQI was 104, which is considered as ‘satisfactory’. The samples were collected from CAAQMS, PAU campus, he said.

Ratra said several factors contributed to increased pollution levels such as traffic congestions, stubble-burning, dust particles in the atmosphere, the direction of the wind etc. He said while a few factors could be controlled, there were others that were out of man’s control.

Measures taken to lower AQI

The PPCB has taken several measures to help reduce the AQI levels in the city, including monitoring and upgrading existing air pollution control devices, providing green belt and mini jungles around industrial areas and along road, improving the handling and disposal of municipal solid waste/legacy waste etc. The road infrastructure in the city has also been improved to augment a smooth flow of traffic. Multiple elevated roads and underpasses have been made to reduce congestion on roads. The green cover in the city has grown. There has been a reduction in the burning of garbage or other materials. More battery-operated e-rickshaws have been introduced and there had been a strict crackdown on stubble-burning by the authorities concerned, too.

Ludhiana