Explained: This article explains the political background, key decisions, and possible outcomes related to Explained : ‘Feels Like The Pandemic’: As Mumbai Gasps, City’s Pollution Politics Heats Up | Mumbai-news News and Its Impact and why it matters right now.
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Mumbai’s BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani has also addressed public concerns, saying that the city’s AQI levels are the result of multiple factors
The worsening air quality in the city has sparked strong political reactions from the opposition. (File pic: PTI)
Mumbai’s air quality has once again slipped into dangerous territory, with the city recording an AQI of around 170 on February 25, well into the “unhealthy” range and far above the safe limit of 0–50. Doctors continue to warn that prolonged outdoor exposure could trigger breathing discomfort, especially among children, senior citizens, and those with underlying respiratory conditions.
The poor air has now become part of daily life for most Mumbaikars. Actress Saiyami Kher, who runs regularly along the city’s promenades, took to social media to voice her concern over the AQI in the city in a post that quickly went viral. She wrote that stepping out now “feels like the pandemic”, except that this time, “instead of the virus, the air itself could kill us”. For her, running is a personal anchor, but she says the very air that once energised her “feels like it’s quietly destroying” her.
The worsening air quality in the city has also sparked strong political reactions from the opposition. Congress MLC Satyajeet Tambe criticised the government for allowing development to overshadow public health priorities. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray accused the administration of normalising hazardous AQI in Mumbai, where he took a dig at the government and said, “If Mumbaikars breathing in pollution doesn’t bother you, just imagine that there’s a VIP coming to our city for a week.”
Samajwadi party leader Abu Asim Azmi also staged a symbolic protest in the Vidhan Bhavan, wearing a mask and holding up a banner that highlighted Mumbai’s alarming AQI and demanded urgent intervention.
The state government has cited action on its part. Environment Minister Pankaja Munde informed the legislative assembly that between October 2025 and January 2026, civic authorities had issued 1,047 stop-work notices to construction sites found violating dust control and environmental norms.
“We are following a strict escalation matrix for violators. Construction projects failing to adhere to dust-mitigation guidelines are first given a formal intimation, followed by a show-cause notice, and then a stop-work order if they remain non-compliant,” said Munde.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, while answering a question on air pollution in the ongoing assembly, said the Mumbai civic body has been directed to prepare a dynamic monitoring system based on Internet of Things (IoT) and AI to track sources of air pollution in the city.
Mumbai’s BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani has also addressed public concerns, saying that the city’s AQI levels are the result of multiple factors. According to him, a portion of the pollution comes from meteorological conditions, which no agency can control. Another layer stems from regular emissions from vehicles and industry, which require coordinated action across departments. Construction activity, he said, contributes roughly 35% to the overall AQI impact, and the BMC can regulate only that segment.
Gagrani added that the civic body is expanding hyper-local monitoring with the help of IIT Kanpur to better understand micro-level pollution patterns. BMC has also mandated AQI sensors at construction sites and continues dust-control measures such as road misting, mechanical sweeping, and targeted enforcement at non-compliant locations.
February 26, 2026, 01:00 IST
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