Bhubaneswar, Jan 9: At least seven towns in Odisha registered an Air Quality Index (AQI) of more than 300 at 4pm on Monday while the AQI in Angul was recorded 352, third worst in the country, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Similarly, Cuttack had an AQI of 340, Bhubaneswar- 334, Balasore- 334, Keonjhar -326, Talcher- 304 and Rairangpur -300.
On the other hand, the AQI in Badbil was 292, Byasanagar 275, Tensa 182 and Rourkela 178.
Air pollution in Odisha is in bad shape due to factors such as heavy vehicular movement,rapid industrialization, felling of trees and construction work.
Notably, an AQI value of 50 or below represents good air quality and an AQI value over 300 represents hazardous air quality.
Besides, as many as 33 forest fire incidents were reported in Nabarangpur, Jeypore, Sundargarh, Rayagada, Sambalpur, Paralakhemundi, Rourkela, Angul, Rajgangpur and Talcher in the state on Monday.
