VARANASI: The Central Pollution Control Board placed Varanasi in the Satisfactory air quality category on Sunday, November 1, 2026, with an AQI of 81 at 4 pm IST, up from 38 on Saturday. The new reading follows the Good category result of 30 on October 30, as reported earlier on dalimss.news.
For residents around BHU and other city neighbourhoods planning outdoor activity, the change means the latest daily summary carries a different health description. CPCB associates the Satisfactory category with possible minor breathing discomfort among sensitive people. Readers should check a current local station reading before using Sunday's city average to make decisions on Monday.
The November 1 figure is a summary of the preceding 24 hours, issued at 4 pm IST. It is not a measurement of every lane at that hour. Three of Varanasi's four listed monitoring stations contributed, the same participation count recorded in the official bulletin issued on Saturday, October 31.
What the new bulletin establishes
The November 1 official bulletin identifies PM10 as Varanasi's prominent pollutant. The city row gives an index value, category and station count. It does not give a separate concentration for PM10 or identify an emission source responsible for the change.
| Daily bulletin, IST | Varanasi AQI | Category | Stations contributing |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 31, 4 pm | 38 | Good | 3 of 4 |
| November 1, 4 pm | 81 | Satisfactory | 3 of 4 |
The increase between these two comparable bulletin times is 43 index points. Both rows list PM10 alone as the prominent pollutant. The change therefore crosses the boundary between Good, which covers index values from zero to 50, and Satisfactory, which covers 51 to 100. It has not crossed into the Moderate band beginning at 101.
CPCB's October 31 bulletin also helps separate the latest development from the earlier improvement. Saturday's 38 remained within Good. Sunday's 81 moved into the next category. Those dated readings describe a change in the daily index; they do not establish that every pollutant concentration changed in the same direction or proportion.
What residents should do
When sharing the figure, include November 1, 4 pm IST and the city name. For a fresh check, use the official monitoring portal linked from CPCB's National Air Quality Index page. A dated bulletin and a later station display answer different questions, so their times and locations should accompany any comparison.
Sensitive residents should take account of the category's health description when planning time outdoors. The bulletin does not announce a Varanasi school closure, a restriction on public activity or a new local emergency measure. Its city average alone should not be treated as an instruction of that kind.
The board cautions that conditions may differ between monitoring locations. It uses an average for cities with several stations for simplicity, while acknowledging the limits of that approach. With three of four stations participating, the summary also leaves one listed station outside that day's contributing set. The bulletin does not explain the missing participation, so it cannot support a claim about equipment failure or conditions at that location.
Reading the number alongside the weather
AQI and weather remain separate checks. Earlier reports on the revision to the city's rain forecast and the advisory for harvested paddy and wet fields provide dated background. Sunday's pollution bulletin does not attribute the rise to rainfall, a festival or any particular activity.
The next daily bulletin will provide another dated comparison when CPCB releases it. Until then, the verified position is specific: Varanasi recorded 81 in the November 1 city summary, PM10 was the prominent pollutant, and three stations contributed. A forecast of further deterioration would require additional evidence beyond those observations.
