Stubble burning cases in Punjab have been on the rise over the past few days, while a slowdown in wind speed has caused a thick layer of smog to settle in the sky. This has led to a significant drop in air quality, with near-zero visibility around Amritsar Airport. As a result, one international and one domestic flight were diverted to Delhi, and both flights reached Amritsar with delays of seven to eight hours.
According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Chandigarh’s air quality was worse than Delhi’s on Sunday. By 4 p.m., Chandigarh’s AQI stood at 339, while Delhi’s was slightly better at 334. The only silver lining for Punjab is that the AQI in all cities has moved from the “very poor” category to the “poor” category, now staying within 300 points.
The highest AQI was recorded in Mandi Gobindgarh at 287, followed by Amritsar at 237, Ludhiana at 218, and Patiala at 205. According to the Meteorological Department, the colder temperatures in the morning and evening and high humidity levels are causing smoke particles from stubble burning to accumulate in the air, rather than dispersing, thus increasing pollution.
Orange Alert Issued for Dense Fog, Temperature Drops
The Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert for dense fog in Punjab on Monday. Some areas may experience very dense fog, which has already led to a 1.7-degree drop in temperature. Amritsar recorded a maximum temperature of 26.9°C, which is 1.3 degrees below normal. The state’s average temperature has dropped by 0.4 degrees, though the minimum temperature remains 5.9 degrees above normal.
345 New Stubble Burning Cases
On Sunday, 345 new stubble burning cases were reported, bringing the total to 6,611. Sangrur recorded the highest number of incidents with 116 new cases, followed by Mansa (44), Ferozepur (26), Moga (24), and Faridkot (24). Other cases were reported in Patiala (15), Ludhiana (14), Tarn Taran (11), Malerkotla (9), Barnala (5), and four cases each in Kapurthala, Jalandhar, and Fatehgarh Sahib. Gurdaspur and Amritsar reported two cases each, while SAS Nagar and Hoshiarpur each reported one case.
