GURUGRAM: The city's air quality moved from moderate to poor on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, as the Central Pollution Control Board's 4 pm IST bulletin recorded an AQI of 203, up from 174 a day earlier. The category change is the new development for residents: Gurugram's monitoring network, which includes Sector 51, reported all four stations participating.
Neighbouring Manesar remained in the poor category at 212, although its index eased from 219 on Tuesday, October 27. Its monitoring location is Sector 2, IMT. Both figures are averages for the preceding 24 hours published at the same daily reporting time.
Gurugram crosses the poor air threshold
Wednesday's Gurugram reading was 29 points higher than Tuesday's. Under the classification printed in the CPCB bulletin, moderate covers 101 to 200 and poor covers 201 to 300. The latest value puts the city three points above the moderate category's upper limit.
PM2.5 was the prominent pollutant in the Gurugram entry on October 28. The October 27 entry had listed both PM2.5 and PM10. Manesar's entry identified PM2.5 on both days. These are the pollutants highlighted in the city entries; the index number should not be read as a pollutant concentration.
| Location | October 27, 4 pm IST | October 28, 4 pm IST | Latest category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gurugram | 174 | 203 | Poor |
| Manesar | 219 | 212 | Poor |
The October 28 official bulletin records participation by four of four Gurugram stations and Manesar's one station. The previous day's bulletin shows the same participation for these two cities, allowing a comparison between the two dated city entries.
Across the neighbouring NCR cities listed in Wednesday's bulletin, Noida recorded 246, Greater Noida 220 and Ghaziabad 210, all in the poor category. Faridabad remained moderate at 126. Those are separate city entries from the same 4 pm IST edition, placing Gurugram's category change alongside the readings in nearby urban areas.
What the category means for residents
CPCB's health statement for poor air says prolonged exposure can cause breathing discomfort to most people. Its moderate category statement identifies breathing discomfort among people with lung or heart disease and asthma. Wednesday's change therefore moves Gurugram into a category whose stated health impact extends to a wider group on prolonged exposure.
People arranging extended outdoor work or exercise can use that warning when deciding how long to remain outside. The number is a dated city summary, so readers should check the official monitoring information again before treating it as the condition at their location on Thursday morning.
The board cautions that air quality can vary between monitoring locations within a city. It uses an average for a simple city indication while acknowledging the limitations of averaging. A citywide AQI of 203 therefore does not establish that Sector 51, or every residential sector, individually recorded 203.
Where to find a more local reading
The official station directory lists NISE Gwal Pahari, Sector 51, Teri Gram and Vikas Sadan for Gurugram. NISE Gwal Pahari is listed under the India Meteorological Department; the other three, and Manesar's Sector 2 IMT station, are listed under the Haryana State Pollution Control Board.
CPCB acknowledges that different agencies supply the underlying monitoring data. Its national AQI page provides access to current and archived bulletins and the monitoring network. Those official products are the appropriate reference for checking the next city or station update.
The two bulletins do not establish which emission sources caused Gurugram's rise, predict Thursday's AQI or announce a change in pollution restrictions. Earlier coverage of the October 27 readings, the road dust inspection and weekly pollution reports and site checks provides context. The verified update here is the October 28 move into poor air, measured at 4 pm IST.
