Bengaluru air quality map

How much pollution is shown on the air quality maps in Bengaluru?

Bengaluru is a city located in Karnataka in the southern regions of India. It has a high level of pollution and is subject to these elevated amounts of smoke, haze and other forms of dangerous chemical compounds for much of the year. The pollution levels in Bengaluru can get so high that it causes a serious amount of health issues for both inhabitants, as well as those passing through, particularly in the more polluted parts of town. Air quality maps and air pollution maps can assist in being able to know exactly where the most polluted parts of Bengaluru are, with updates coming in constantly (as well as forecasts also being available on the regular city page for Bengaluru). US AQI readings are shown across many areas in the city, as well as on the outskirts and neighboring cities, which the air quality maps all cover. Due to Bengaluru being subject to such high levels of pollution throughout the year, as mentioned, many of the US AQI figures that would be shown on the air pollution map would have significant figures, with the overall US AQI level recorded on a day in late March of 2022 displayed a US AQI reading of 132, placing Bengaluru into the 'unhealthy for sensitive groups' bracket, which requires a US AQI reading of 101 to 150 to be classified as such and is color-coded as orange.

Each air quality classification has the associated color code that goes with it, and this is still utilized in the air quality maps present in Bengaluru. When scanning the air pollution maps, one can quickly see which areas of the city are far more polluted, as the colors range from lighter in tone at the best levels of air quality (blue, green and yellow), up to far darker colors as the pollution levels rise, which includes red, purple and maroon, colors that are unfortunately quite commonly seen in some of the more heavily polluted cities throughout India, particularly those near to the capital. In closing, the air quality maps and air pollution maps for Bengaluru show concise and numerous readings throughout the city, with many different air quality monitoring stations and other similar recording facilities all transmitting the data regarding pollution levels up onto the air quality maps, which can then be viewed at any time. With its high amount of anthropogenic movement occurring, along with industrial facilities and vehicular fumes all adding to the pollution levels, as mentioned, the air pollution figures seen on the air quality maps will remain at a fairly high ambient level throughout much of the year.

What causes the air pollution maps to show such high levels of pollution in Bengaluru?

The reason as to why the air quality maps show such high figures of pollution in the form of US AQI is that, as briefly mentioned above, there is a huge amount of polluting sources present throughout Bengaluru, and they can all come together to form the heightened readings of air contamination as seen on the air pollution maps. With approximately 8 and a half million people living within the metropolitan area alone, Bengaluru is naturally going to be subject to much higher levels of pollution, with many different types of chemical compounds and hazardous particles all being present in the air, at varying levels throughout different areas of the city. Some of these chemical pollutants will be touched on in further detail in the following question, to understand what one may be getting exposed to, particularly in more polluted parts of the city.

In short (as there are a myriad of varied pollution sources that all have their times of the year to appear), the majority of air pollution in Bengaluru that makes it onto the air quality maps, is caused by emissions from vast amounts of smaller, personal (and sometimes significantly lower quality) vehicles, which can also run on poorer quality fuels, leading to a greater amount of particles and chemicals given off into the air. With such a large population, and a huge workforce in its ever-growing tech sector (being known as the ‘Silicon Valley’ of India), rush hour traffic causes a huge amount of pollution, and certain hours of the day can see massive spikes in the US AQI levels, along with PM2.5 concentrations also going up rapidly. Other sources of air pollution that cause higher ratings on the air quality maps in Bengaluru include fires from the burning of waste and refuse, combustion from factory boilers, construction sites as well as road repairs, both of which give off heavy amounts of particle pollution from the materials used, along with the heavy machinery also emitting large amounts of chemical compounds, causing the US AQI readings on the air quality maps to jump up significantly.

Do the pollution readings on air quality maps reveal what pollutants are in the air in Bengaluru?

Whilst the air quality maps and air pollution maps do not directly reveal the range of different pollutants that are in the air in Bengaluru, they can be found on the regular city pages, which also include air quality forecasts, as well as their hourly updates, although in a more generalized style and not as accurately telling as the air quality maps are (which shows exactly how much pollution is in any given area across the city).

However, the pollutants that go up into forming the US AQI figure are the same throughout the world, and they include carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, as well as the two main forms of particulate matter, PM2.5 and PM10.

Do high readings on air quality maps in Bengaluru indicate the possibility of health problems arising?

When the air quality maps in Bengaluru show higher readings, there can indeed be a number of health issues present when people who live within these more highly polluted areas are subject to sustained and elevated air pollution levels. Generally, in areas that have a 'moderate' level (and below) of air pollution shown on the air quality maps, a majority of people will escape symptoms, although dry coughs and other respiratory irritation may start to occur. When higher readings occur consistently in certain areas of the city, there will be a distinct correlation with admissions to hospitals and other pollution-related ailments, which can range from very superficial ones up to premature death. Air quality map readings will give an accurate image of how dangerous a certain area of the city is, in regards to what materials are in the atmosphere and the subsequent effects.