Raipur vs Varanasi
Side-by-side air quality comparison between Raipur and Varanasi.
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 | Raipur | Varanasi |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5(µg/m³) | 46.40 | 43.80 |
| PM10(µg/m³) | 52.30 | 52.90 |
| NO₂(µg/m³) | 43.70 | 28.20 |
| SO₂(µg/m³) | 70.60 | 36.90 |
| O₃(µg/m³) | 42.00 | 45.00 |
| CO(µg/m³) | 484.00 | 440.00 |
CPCB Multi-Year History (2016–2024)
Summary
Overview
In 2024, Raipur averaged an AQI of 74 while Varanasi averaged 56 — a 18-point (32%) gap, with Raipur the more polluted and Varanasi the cleaner of the two. On 372 days when both cities reported, Varanasi was cleaner on 299 of them; the average daily gap was 43 AQI points.
Seasonality & days
Raipur peaks in November, while Varanasi peaks in January. Raipur logged 0% Severe days and 54.3% Good-or-Satisfactory days; Varanasi was 2.8% Severe and 36% Good-or-Satisfactory. Longest clean-air streaks: Raipur 70 days, Varanasi 87 days.
Year-over-year progress
Raipur has improved by 64 AQI points (46.4%) from 2022 to 2024; Varanasi has improved by 169 AQI points (75.1%) over the same window. The worst recorded day for Raipur reached AQI 226 at AIIMS (CECB) on 2023-12-26; Varanasi hit AQI 500 at Ardhali Bazar (UPPCB) on 2017-07-11.
Station-level disparity
Raipur spans 4 CPCB stations with a 42-point spread (min 63, max 105); Varanasi spans 4 stations with a 94-point spread (min 71, max 165).
Verdict
🏆 Varanasi has better air quality with an AQI of 74 compared to Raipur's 78.