Air quality in most parts of Chennai deteriorated due to continuous bursting of fireworks, as part of Deepavali celebrations. A scene at Guindy.
| Photo Credit: B. Velankanni Raj

Chennai’s air quality deteriorated sharply after Deepavali celebrations as the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) slipped to the ‘poor’ category at 213 on the morning of November 9, according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) Sameer app. 

The deterioration followed a night of intense firecracker bursting, which caused dense smoke and reduced visibility across several parts of the city after 8 p.m. on Sunday (November 8, 2026).

Post-Deepavali smog envelopes cities as air quality plummets to ‘severe’ | In pictures

A thick layer of toxic haze engulfs Delhi as people commute near Rashtrapati Bhavan, shrouded in thick smog during the early morning of November 9, 2026, a day after Deepavali. The city’s 24-hour average AQI was 370, in the “very poor” category, at 9 a.m.

People jog near India Gate, shrouded in thick smog, as Delhi’s AQI touched 404 in the ‘severe’ category at 4 a.m. on November 9, 2026, according to the CPCB’s live dashboard.

Burari Crossing recorded Delhi’s highest AQI on November 9, 2026, at 441, followed by Vivek Vihar at 437 and Delhi Technological University at 434. People walking near India Gate.

Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) is in force across Delhi and adjoining districts of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, following the CAQM’s decision. A view of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, shrouded in thick smog during the early morning hours after Deepavali night.

The Supreme Court had allowed only green firecrackers in specified time windows on November 7 and 8, 2026, but the more polluting traditional crackers were also available in Delhi markets.

People commute near Rashtrapati Bhavan, shrouded in thick smog. PM2.5 refers to fine inhalable particles 2.5 micrometres or smaller, which can enter deep into the lungs and the bloodstream and cause respiratory and other health problems.

Kherwadi-Bandra East in Mumbai recorded an AQI of 264 on November 9, 2026, followed by Sewri at 226, Ghatkopar at 221 and Chembur at 216.
Byculla recorded an AQI of 193, Mindspace-Malad West 191, Kandivali West 187 and Worli 148 in Mumbai on November 9. Kurla was the lowest at 96.

Chennai’s AQI slipped to the ‘poor’ category at 213 on the morning of November 9, 2026, according to the CPCB’s Sameer app.

A private sensor at the Chennai home of weather blogger K. Srikanth recorded an AQI of around 1,000 for nearly four hours between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. on November 8, 2026. Chennai residents said smoke from firecrackers lingered in cramped residential communities, with visibility so poor at one point that people could barely see one another.

As of 9 a.m. on November 9, 2026, Manali Village recorded Chennai’s highest AQI at 296, followed by Arumbakkam at 265, Kodungaiyur at 215, Royapuram at 184 and Velachery Residential Area at 142.

Hyderabad woke up to a grey, smoggy morning on November 9, 2026, after Deepavali celebrations that went on until 3 a.m. in localities such as Banjara Hills, Panjagutta, S.R. Nagar, Ameerpet and Somajiguda.

Smog shrouds the historic Golconda Fort. PM2.5 in Hyderabad reached 392 μg/m³ at 9.30 p.m. on November 8, 2026, with the city’s AQI averaging 509.
Ravi Colony near Masjid Banda in Hyderabad logged an AQI of 995 on November 8, 2026, and Serilingampally recorded 666 at 11.30 p.m., when the city average was 442.

Telangana Pollution Control Board monitors in Hyderabad were out of order as pollution rose on November 8, 2026, with the University of Hyderabad station offline by 10 p.m. The figures come from publicly available monitors. Hyderabad’s AQI was still 178 on November 9, morning, with PM10 at 113 μg/m³.

A vendor walks amid a thick layer of smog, near Sangam in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow (251), Amritsar (242), Jodhpur (234), Ahmedabad (230), Dehradun (228), Jaipur and Udaipur (223 each), Surat (207), Nagpur (239), Pune (221) and Bhopal (205) also recorded ‘poor’ air quality on November 9, 2026.

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Station-wise data from the CPCB and Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB), as of 9 a.m. on Monday (November 9, 2026), showed that Manali Village recorded the highest AQI at 296, followed by Arumbakkam at 265, Kodungaiyur at 215, Royapuram at 184 and Velachery Residential Area at 142. 

Only seven of Chennai’s nine air quality monitoring stations are currently relaying data. The monitoring stations at Ennore and Alandur are not operational, limiting the availability of official air quality data from these locations.

On Sunday night, the seven operational monitoring stations had recorded a calculated average AQI of 178 at 10 p.m., according to TNPCB data. Royapuram recorded the highest reading at 246, falling in the ‘Poor’ category, followed by Arumbakkam at 189, Manali Village at 183, Manali at 182, Kodungaiyur at 177, Perungudi at 173 and Velachery at 94. 

While the official city average remained in the ‘Moderate’ category, residents reported poor visibility due to the accumulation of firecracker smoke. 

Meanwhile, private air quality monitors, however, indicated considerably higher pollution levels during the peak hours of celebrations. K. Srikanth, a weather blogger who runs Chennaiyil Oru Mazhai Kaalam (Chennai Rains), in a post on X, said the outdoor air quality sensor installed at his residence recorded an AQI of around 1,000 for nearly four hours between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Sunday.

“The concentrated bursting of crackers, partially due to the rule and trying to burst between spells of rain, have made it worse. This morning, at 7 a.m., the AQI has come down since midnight and is hovering around the 200 mark,” he said in the post.

He said pollution levels could remain elevated over the next few days as northerly winds persist. A shift to easterly winds, which bring in air from the Bay of Bengal, is expected to aid the dispersal of pollutants and improve air quality.

Aruna, a resident of Valasaravakkam, said the designated window for bursting crackers was too short and too early for families to participate in the celebrations. 

“The window for bursting crackers was too short and too early, especially since there are rituals associated with Diwali for many families. The timings should have been announced well in advance, and the practicality of the time window should have been considered. A slot between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. would have been more convenient, as families need time to get ready. Women are usually occupied with cooking and other preparations and can only join in after 10 a.m. There was also no proper supervision or enforcement of the prescribed timings,” she said.

Vaishnavi, another resident said, the situation was worse in residential communities because of the cramped spaces, which prevented smoke from dispersing. Visibility was so poor at one point that residents could barely see one another. They suggested that the government issue advance advisories to residential communities on the restricted hours for bursting crackers, noting that the volume of crackers burst between 7.30 p.m. and 8.30 p.m. on Sunday had resulted in overwhelming levels of smoke and waste.

Published – November 09, 2026 10:27 am IST