Karnal vs Salem
Side-by-side air quality comparison between Karnal and Salem.
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 | Karnal | Salem |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5(µg/m³) | 107.60 | 12.70 |
| PM10(µg/m³) | 257.00 | 15.90 |
| NO₂(µg/m³) | 51.00 | 17.00 |
| SO₂(µg/m³) | 13.40 | 7.00 |
| O₃(µg/m³) | 17.00 | 30.00 |
| CO(µg/m³) | 1055.00 | 237.00 |
CPCB Multi-Year History (2016–2024)
Summary
Overview
In 2024, Karnal averaged an AQI of 102 while Salem averaged 68 — a 34-point (50%) gap, with Karnal the more polluted and Salem the cleaner of the two. On 367 days when both cities reported, Salem was cleaner on 274 of them; the average daily gap was 59 AQI points.
Seasonality & days
Karnal peaks in November, while Salem peaks in April. Karnal logged 0.1% Severe days and 46.2% Good-or-Satisfactory days; Salem was 0% Severe and 87.1% Good-or-Satisfactory. Longest clean-air streaks: Karnal 53 days, Salem 17 days.
Year-over-year progress
Karnal has improved by 71 AQI points (41%) from 2019 to 2024; Salem has improved by 5 AQI points (6.8%) over the same window. The worst recorded day for Karnal reached AQI 456 at Sector-12 (HSPCB) on 2019-11-03; Salem hit AQI 214 at Sona College of Technology (TNPCB) on 2024-01-15.
Station-level disparity
Karnal spans 1 CPCB stations with a 0-point spread (min 128, max 128); Salem spans 1 stations with a 0-point spread (min 73, max 73).
Verdict
🏆 Salem has better air quality with an AQI of 21 compared to Karnal's 259. That's a significant difference of 238 points.