After two green days on Wednesday and Thursday that offered some respite to Mumbaikars from poor air quality, Mumbai’s Air Quality Index (AQI) climbed to 127 on Friday, January 30, placing it in the ‘moderate’ (yellow) category. Friday also ranked among the five worst AQI days recorded so far this January. PM10 was the worst pollutant on Friday.
On Wednesday, the city recorded an AQI of 70 — the lowest this month — falling in the ‘satisfactory’ category. This was followed by an AQI of 94 on Thursday, which also remained in the satisfactory range. On both these days, CO2 was the worst pollutant.
With Friday`s spike, the usual areas known for poor air quality have recorded the worst AQI, with the highest near Mumbai Airport, at 197. This was followed by Sion at 153, Deonar at 149, Chakala and Malad at 147 each, and Kurla at 144. The Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) reported an AQI of 128.
However, during the winter months this season, January has so far recorded eight green AQI days. In comparison, December 2025 saw only two green AQI days. By contrast, during last winter, both December and January recorded no bad AQI days.
127
AQI on Friday Jan. 30
