Vehicular traffic was also affected and many people with respiratory issues and allergies complained of cough and itchy throats, and even difficulty in breathing.
Poor air quality and increase in particulate matter pollutants, coupled with foggy conditions of the city's meagre winter, left the city and adjoining areas covered in a thick blanket of smog on Saturday morning. The Air Quality Index (AQI) at Bandra logged an all-day high reading of 312 at 10 am.
Commuters, angered by the delay in train services caused by the smog, even resorted to a rail roko at Vasind station, delaying services by about 45 minutes. Vehicular traffic was also affected and many people with respiratory issues and allergies complained of cough and itchy throats, and even difficulty in breathing.
Officials from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said the phenomenon was unusual. "Mumbai does report fogs but very rarely, and those too are limited to early mornings," said K S Hosalikar, IMD's deputy director general for the Western region. "However due to the foggy conditions on Saturday morning and poor air quality, dust and particulate pollutants floating in the air got trapped by moisture, and a blanket of smog took over."
According to air quality experts, the AQI deteriorated to 'Poor' and Particulate Matter (PM2.5) pollutant — minute particles that can cause serious health impact – measured over 300 microgram per cubic metre (µg/m3) at five out of 10 locations measured in the city.
Meanwhile, services on both Western Railway and Central Railway were affected. The situation on CR deteriorated during morning peak hours and some irate commuters resorted to rail roko at Vasind station (on the Kalyan-Kasara route), delaying services by 45 minutes to an hour. However Railway police managed to disperse the crowd by around 8.15 am and rail traffic resumed by 8.22 am. Due to poor visibility, motorists drove slowly, creating traffic snarls, but no accidents were reported.
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