Chennai vs Rishīkesh
Side-by-side air quality comparison between Chennai and Rishīkesh.
Live AQI from Open-Meteo CAMS (~45 km global model, updated hourly). Multi-year history from CPCB station data via aqinow.co pipeline (2016–2024, station-level daily records).
AQI Comparison
Pollutant-level comparison (PM2.5, PM10, O3, NO2, SO2, CO)▾
| Pollutant | Chennai | Rishīkesh |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5(µg/m³) | 16.60 | 6.70 |
| PM10(µg/m³) | 18.20 | 6.80 |
| NO₂(µg/m³) | 16.20 | 11.00 |
| SO₂(µg/m³) | 9.00 | 2.20 |
| O₃(µg/m³) | 57.00 | 89.00 |
| CO(µg/m³) | 350.00 | 353.00 |
CPCB Multi-Year History (2016–2024)
Summary
Overview
In 2024, Chennai averaged an AQI of 68 while Rishīkesh averaged 74 — a 6-point (9%) gap, with Rishīkesh the more polluted and Chennai the cleaner of the two. On 340 days when both cities reported, Rishīkesh was cleaner on 251 of them; the average daily gap was 42 AQI points.
Seasonality & days
Chennai peaks in December, while Rishīkesh peaks in January. Chennai logged 0% Severe days and 57.5% Good-or-Satisfactory days; Rishīkesh was 0% Severe and 88.3% Good-or-Satisfactory. Longest clean-air streaks: Chennai 53 days, Rishīkesh 95 days.
Year-over-year progress
Chennai has improved by 25 AQI points (26.9%) from 2017 to 2024; Rishīkesh has worsened by 21 AQI points (39.6%) over the same window. The worst recorded day for Chennai reached AQI 391 at Kodungaiyur (TNPCB) on 2021-05-14; Rishīkesh hit AQI 208 at Shivaji Nagar (UKPCB) on 2024-11-11.
Station-level disparity
Chennai spans 9 CPCB stations with a 27-point spread (min 63, max 90); Rishīkesh spans 1 stations with a 0-point spread (min 64, max 64).
Verdict
🏆 Rishīkesh has better air quality with an AQI of 11 compared to Chennai's 28.