Chennai, Nov 9:
Deepavali celebrations across Chennai led to a marked drop in air quality, disruptions to flight operations at the airport due to reduced visibility, and extensive post-festival sanitation efforts by civic authorities.
Monitoring data showed a post-festival rise in atmospheric particulate matter, with private weather observers recording peak Air Quality Index (AQI) levels crossing 1,200 late Sunday night following evening celebrations.
Official readings from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) on Monday morning also reflected elevated levels across city neighbourhoods, with Manali recording an AQI of 277, Arumbakkam 264, Kodungaiyur 220, and Velachery 202.
Flight schedules at Chennai airport were impacted on Sunday night as smoke from Deepavali celebrations blanketed the airfield area, affecting a total of 26 flights. Eleven arriving servicesāincluding flights from Kolkata, Delhi, Pune, Sri Lanka, Bangkok, Thiruvananthapuram, Singapore, Siliguri, Tiruchy, and Kuala Lumpurācircled over the airport before landing.
An IndiGo flight from Raipur carrying 156 passengers was unable to land and was redirected to Bengaluru. Additionally, 15 departing flights to domestic and international destinations experienced delays, with air traffic control pacing movements based on visibility windows.
In response to the festival aftermath, the Greater Chennai Corporation deployed 600 sanitation personnel, 350 vehicles, and distributed 30,000 specialised collection bags to clear and segregate an estimated 600 tonnes of cracker residue for transfer to the Gummidipoondi management facility.
Concurrently, medical facilities across Tamil Nadu handled 679 cases of burn injuries sustained during the celebrations, with 569 individuals discharged following primary care and 110 remaining under observation.