In the last two months, a total of 1,742 cases of acute respiratory infections (ARI) have been reported across five sentinel surveillance sites monitoring air pollution-related health issues in the state, according to data from the Health Department. However, the 17 sentinel sites established by the state government recorded 1,924 ARI cases during the same period.
Health officials attribute these figures to the extremely poor air quality prevailing across Maharashtra. From January to August, the 17 sentinel sites reported 10,108 ARI cases, leading to 4,681 hospitalizations. Mumbai reported the highest number of ARI cases, with 719 reported between October and November, followed by Thane (396), Pune (282), Akola (210), and Kolhapur (135).
