Bhumi Pednekar questions late-night firecracker bursting after Mumbai’s Diwali celebrations.
Navy Nagar recorded an AQI of 497 at 2 am.
Mumbai’s overall AQI stood at 171, despite severe localised pollution spikes.
Mumbai witnessed a sharp rise in air pollution after Diwali celebrations, with firecrackers pushing air quality readings into alarming territory across several parts of the city. Actor Bhumi Pednekar raised concerns over the situation, calling the aftermath hazardous and questioning why crackers continued to be burst late into the night. Her remarks came after nine of Mumbai’s 25 air quality monitoring stations recorded poor air quality on Monday morning. The city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI), however, stood at 171, placing it in the moderate category.
Bhumi Pednekar calls out late-night firecracker bursting
Taking to Instagram Stories, Bhumi spoke about the impact of the celebrations, including the pollution, noise, and waste left on the streets. She wrote: “Houses have caught fire, the AQI is hazardous, roads are full of waste, it's 3 am and all I can hear are loud crackers. Our roads were full of people bursting crackers on them, out in the open, even when it’s not allowed. This is heartbreaking. @my bmc ®mumbaipolice."
On Monday morning, the actor also shared a post highlighting how firecrackers affect people and animals. The post read: “Diwali is a festival of light, love, family and new beginnings. But every year, along with the celebrations, comes a familiar aftermath: polluted air, firecracker waste, noise and frightened animals. Firecrackers release fine particulate matter and other pollutants that add to an already challenging air-quality situation. And the impact isn’t experienced equally.
Children, older people, those with respiratory conditions and animals are particularly vulnerable. This year, let’s make a choice that allows everyone, including the ones who cannot speak for themselves, to enjoy the festival.”
Mumbai AQI spikes to 497 in Navy Nagar
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered good, while readings between 401 and 500 fall in the severe category. The remaining categories are satisfactory (51–100), moderate (101–200), poor (201–300), and very poor (301–400).
Navy Nagar recorded one of the city’s highest readings. Its AQI stood at 359 around 10 pm before peaking at 497 at 2 am. By 7 am, it had dropped to 274. Chembur’s reading rose from 334 to 401 overnight before falling to 216 at 7 am. Shivaji Nagar recorded an AQI of 444 at 11 pm, which later came down to 223 by 7 am.
Of the 25 monitoring stations, 12 recorded moderate air quality, three reported satisfactory conditions, and Borivali East was the only location in the good category. The readings highlighted the uneven impact of post-Diwali pollution across Mumbai.
