TIRUCHY: For the first time, Tiruchy city broke into the top 10 list of cities with better air quality and less pollution in Category-I cities (population above 10 lakh), securing the 9th place in the Swachh Vayu Survekshan 2025 rankings that were released by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, recently.
According to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), the PM10 level limit in residential areas is 60 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m³).
Tiruchy which joined the top 10 club this year, climbing up one position from last year, kept its yearly average at 58 µg/m³, placing it in the ‘safe’ zone.
The city corporation officials attribute the achievement to implementation of several measures like daily sweeping of roads manually and using mechanical sweepers, strict control over open burning of garbage, improved management of construction and demolition waste, etc.
The bio-mining being undertaken at the Ariyamangalam dump yard is a key contributor in reducing air pollution. According to corporation sources, a total of 1,130 permanent sanitation workers are employed by the civic body.
Of this, 800 workers are assigned road sweeping work, while the rest are involved in other sanitation-related tasks. Also, 1,135 contract workers are engaged in door-to-door garbage collection.
Speaking to TNIE, a senior corporation official said, “This recognition motivates us to strengthen our measures further. We will aim for a place among the top five cities next year. In the coming months, we plan to focus on areas where we are currently lacking, promote the use of electric vehicles, encourage industries to switch to cleaner fuels, and involve citizens more actively in maintaining and improving air quality.”
A local resident, C Velu, said, “The air feels much cleaner now, and there is less dust on the roads. It is good to see our city getting better.”
N Rengan, a teacher from Subramaniapuram, said, “There is been a noticeable drop in the burning of garbage in our area. Earlier, the smoke from open burning would cause breathing problems. Things have improved a lot in the past year. Now, it has reduced a lot, and the air feels cleaner, especially in residential areas.”
While Tiruchy secured a top-10 spot with a final score of 186 points among cities with a population over 10 lakh, Madurai and Chennai ranked 40th and 41st, respectively. The ranking is based on eight factors, including dust control, waste management, emissions, and PM10 level improvement.