One Monitor, Many Questions: Vizag’s Air Quality Gap

Visakhapatnam relies on a single real-time air quality monitoring station, even as pollution levels rose sharply in late 2025 and early 2026. As a result, concerns have grown over how accurately the city measures its air quality.

According to guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Visakhapatnam needs at least five Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring (CAAQM) stations. These stations should cover different zones across the city. Specifically, the guidelines call for two stations in residential areas and one each in high-traffic, commercial, and industrial zones. This distribution helps generate reliable and representative data.

However, the city currently operates only one CAAQM station. It is located at the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) office in Dwarakanagar. Since the site falls in a high-traffic area, it does not reflect conditions in residential, commercial, or industrial zones. Consequently, these areas lack real-time air quality monitoring.

Despite this limitation, Visakhapatnam’s real-time air quality data on the CPCB website depends entirely on readings from this single station. Meanwhile, residents frequently use the website and mobile apps to track pollution levels, assuming the data reflects citywide conditions.

Officials from the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) acknowledged the shortfall in monitoring infrastructure. They said authorities are discussing proposals to install the remaining stations in phases. Each CAAQM station, they added, costs more than Rs 1 crore, depending on site requirements.

In addition, the city operates eight manual air quality monitoring stations in different areas. However, officials clarified that these stations do not provide continuous real-time data. As a result, the lack of sufficient CAAQM stations continues to limit the city’s ability to present a clear and complete picture of its air pollution levels.