Guwahati, Agartala most polluted northeastern cities: Report

Guwahati is the most polluted city in India's northeastern states followed by Tripura, according to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment.

Guwahati (Assam): Guwahati is the most polluted city in India's northeastern states followed by Tripura, according to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).

"The problem of air pollution is growing steadily in the states of India’s northeast," the New Delhi-based think tank said.

"The current obsession with high pollution concentration in the Indo-Gangetic Plain and in overall northern India overshadows and sidelines the early signs of the crisis in our northeastern states in the national discourse on air pollution and public health," said Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, CSE, in a statement.

She said that weak and inadequate air quality monitoring and paucity of data do not allow a proper assessment of the risk.

"But even the limited evidence shows several cities -- especially the state capitals (of northeastern states) -- are already vulnerable to poor air quality and winter smog,” she said.

"Cities of northeastern states need urgent attention," Anumita said.

The cities, she added, needed to cut pollution from growing motorisation and congestion, use of solid fuels and open burning, and dispersed industrial sources at the early stages to prevent worsening of the public health crisis in this ecologically vulnerable region.

According to the report, the average PM2.5 levels in 2021 has already surpassed the 2019 annual average in Guwahati. The city’s 2020 annual average was also higher than its 2019 average which indicates a continuous worsening of air in the city.