Bhubaneswar's Air Growing Fouler Than Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad; Tech City's Big Dream Faces Pollution Challenge | Exclusive Details Inside

Bhubaneswar: As Bhubaneswar positions itself as eastern India's next-generation technology and innovation hub – with investments flowing into advanced 3D Glass Substrate manufacturing, AI-led technology ecosystems, HCL's upcoming data centre and several high-end electronics projects – the Odisha capital is simultaneously confronting a less flattering distinction.

Fresh air quality data with CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) reveal that while the city is aspiring to become a futuristic science and technology destination, its air has steadily become more polluted over the past three years.

In 2025, Bhubaneswar recorded significantly more polluted days than major metropolitan cities such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai, highlighting an emerging environmental challenge that could increasingly influence the city's livability and investment appeal.

Bhubaneswar's Air Quality Worsening Every Year

The latest Air Quality Index (AQI) assessment for 2023-2025 paints a worrying picture for the capital city.

Bhubaneswar recorded:

Year	Bad Air Quality Days	Total Monitored Days
2023	36	65
2024	56	365
2025	60	363

The number of "bad air quality" days – classified under Poor, Very Poor and Severe AQI categories – has increased consistently over the past three years.

While the increase from 56 days in 2024 to 60 days in 2025 may appear modest, it confirms that Bhubaneswar's air quality is moving in the wrong direction instead of improving. Nearly one out of every six monitored days in 2025 experienced unhealthy air quality.

The findings indicate that urban expansion, rapid construction activity and the city's growing vehicular footprint are increasingly affecting ambient air quality.

How Bhubaneswar Fares With India's Major Cities

The contrast becomes even sharper when Bhubaneswar is compared with India's biggest metropolitan centres.

City	Bad Days (2025)	Total Days	Bad Days Ratio
Delhi	165	365	45.2%
Bhubaneswar	60	363	16.5%
Mumbai	1	365	0.3%
Bengaluru

0

365

0%

Hyderabad

0

365

0%

Chennai

0

365

0%

Only Delhi reported a substantially worse pollution profile than Bhubaneswar among the cities compared.

More strikingly, Bhubaneswar registered 60 polluted days, whereas Mumbai reported only one bad-air day during the entire year. Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai maintained a clean record with zero bad-air quality days throughout 2025.

The comparison places Odisha's capital in an uncomfortable position, with air quality considerably poorer than several of India's leading IT and technology hubs despite being a much smaller city.

How Polluted Is Bhubaneswar In Odisha?

The AQI analysis also reveals that Bhubaneswar is among the Odisha cities where pollution has steadily worsened.

Cities that turned fouler

City	2025 Bad Days	Trend
Talcher	87	Turned heavily fouler
Angul	76	Turned fouler
Cuttack	69	Turned fouler
Bhubaneswar	60	Turned fouler
Balasore	61	Turned fouler

Among them, Talcher remains Odisha's most pollution-stressed city, with 87 bad-air days in 2025, equivalent to nearly 29% of the monitored year.

Bhubaneswar, meanwhile, has joined the list of cities witnessing a sustained rise in unhealthy air days alongside Angul, Cuttack and Balasore.

On the brighter side, several Odisha cities have shown remarkable improvement.

Keonjhar achieved zero bad-air days in 2025 after recording 21 such days in 2024. Baripada, Nayagarh, Rairangpur, Suakati, Tensa and Bileipada also posted significant improvements, while Brajrajnagar remained among the state's cleanest urban centres with only four bad-air days.

Odisha's Pollution Map: Cities That Improved and Cities That Need Attention

Cities where air quality worsened

• Talcher
• Angul
• Balasore
• Bhubaneswar
• Cuttack

Cities showing significant improvement

• Keonjhar (Zero bad days)
• Baripada
• Nayagarh
• Rairangpur
• Suakati
• Tensa
• Bileipada

Relatively clean cities

• Brajrajnagar
• Keonjhar
• Tensa
• Rairangpur
• Suakati

Cities with relatively stable air quality

• Barbil
• Byasanagar
• Rourkela

The latest AQI trend suggests that while Odisha has several cities where air quality has improved substantially, Bhubaneswar is moving in the opposite direction.

As the capital attracts high-value investments in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, electronics manufacturing and digital infrastructure, the findings underscore the need for equally aggressive measures to improve urban air quality.

Without stronger pollution control, the city's ambition to emerge as a global technology destination could increasingly be accompanied by an image of deteriorating environmental health.

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