India is preparing for its grand festival of lights, Diwali. It is a time of warmth, togetherness, and hope, when homes are lit with lamps and hearts glow with joy. Across parts of eastern India, the same festive season is also marked by Kali Puja, the worship of the goddess Kali. Yet, as every sparkle casts a light, it also creates a shadow. Behind the glitter and glow, Diwali brings with it an often-ignored environmental reality, <\/span>a sharp spike in air pollution<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n Firecrackers, one of the most anticipated parts of the festival, release a bunch of harmful substances like <\/span>particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10)<\/b>, <\/span>nitrogen dioxide (NO\u2082)<\/b>, <\/span>sulphur dioxide (SO\u2082)<\/b>, <\/span>carbon monoxide (CO)<\/b>, <\/span>volatile organic compounds<\/b>, and <\/span>heavy metals<\/b> like lead, copper, and barium. These pollutants don\u2019t just cloud the night sky; they enter our lungs, aggravate respiratory and cardiovascular conditions, and pose serious risks for the elderly, children, and those with chronic diseases.<\/span><\/p>\n This year, the environmental forecast may intensify the scenario further. With the <\/span>La Ni\u00f1a phenomenon<\/b>, India is likely to experience an <\/span>earlier and colder winter<\/b>. Cooler air, combined with reduced wind movement, traps pollutants close to the surface, which is a perfect match for dense <\/span>smog<\/b> and poor air quality.<\/span><\/p>\n Amid this growing concern, <\/span>SwitchON Foundation<\/b> continues to lead initiatives for <\/span>Clean Air and Sustainable Cities<\/b>. Through evidence-based research, citizen engagement, and policy-oriented communication, the organisation strives to promote <\/span>behavioural<\/b> change<\/b> and <\/span>inform<\/b> policymakers<\/b> on building a cleaner, healthier tomorrow.<\/span><\/p>\n\n To understand the city\u2019s air quality situation ahead of Diwali 2025, SwitchON studied <\/span>Kolkata\u2019s pre-festive air quality<\/b>. The goal was to gauge what the city residents, especially its <\/span>vulnerable groups<\/b>, might face when the festivities reach full swing.<\/span><\/p>\n Kolkata, with its growing vehicular density, is battling air pollution year-round. While recent <\/span>untimely rainfall<\/b> due to multiple depressions in the Bay of Bengal region temporarily cleared the air, the improvement was short-lived. As the rains receded and the familiar <\/span>winter chill<\/b> set in, the city\u2019s <\/span>Air Quality Index (AQI)<\/b> began to deteriorate.<\/span><\/p>\n According to data from the <\/span>CPCB\u2019s Sameer App<\/b>, nitrogen dioxide (NO\u2082) has been the <\/span>dominant pollutant<\/b> in the days leading up to Diwali. <\/span>Figure 1 <\/span><\/i>below shows that the overall city AQI this time has remained moderate (101-200), but there is a steady rise in pollution levels.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Introduction India is preparing for its grand festival of lights, Diwali. It is a time of warmth, togetherness, and hope, when homes are lit with lamps and hearts glow with joy. Across parts of eastern India, the same festive season is also marked by Kali Puja, the worship of the goddess Kali. Yet, as every […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5119,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-case"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Scenario of Kolkata: A fortnight before Diwali<\/h4>\n