India, Oct. 22 -- The city's air quality remained in the 'moderate' category on the main Diwali day (Lakshmi puja day), offering some relief this year after the 'poor' air quality levels recorded in previous years. As of 7:00pm on October 21, Pune's Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 132, according to official data. This was a noticeable improvement from last year, when the AQI on Diwali was 201, falling in the 'poor' category.

While the overall air quality showed an encouraging trend, several monitoring stations in both Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad registered higher pollution levels. Stations located in Bhumkar Chowk in Pimpri-Chinchwad and Mhada Colony in Lohegaon operated by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) reported AQI ...