Maharashtra Likely To Move 'Highly Vulnerable' Red Zone For Air Pollution In 2023: Report

Maharashtra currently falls under the orange 'vulnerable' zone with AOD between 0.4 nm and 0.5 nm.

Aerosol pollution in Maharashtra is likely to move to 'highly vulnerable' red zone from the current 'vulnerable' orange zone in 2023, which may lead to drop in visibility levels and pose a host of health problems for its citizens, a study revealed.

As per a release issued by Asar, an organisation working for environmental causes, high aerosol amounts include particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) comprising sea salt, dust, sulphate, black and organic carbon.

If inhaled, these substances can be harmful to people's health, it said.

Aerosol optical depth (AOD) is the quantitative estimate of the aerosol present in the atmosphere and it can be used as a proxy measurement of PM2.5.