Silchar: Assam and Tripura have emerged as some of India’s most worrying air pollution zones, with dirty air lingering through the year, a new report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) has warned.

The study shows that PM2.5 pollution in both states stays high in almost every season. This is unusual. In most parts of India, air quality improves during the monsoon as rain clears the air. But in the Assam–Tripura region, pollution levels remain high and quickly rise again after the rains.

CREA used a new machine learning method for the study. It combined ground air quality data with satellite readings. This helped researchers map pollution more closely to where people actually live.

The report says the problem is not weather. Instead, it is steady and ongoing emissions. These baseline sources keep pollution levels high all year.

According to the findings, every monitored district in Assam and Tripura crossed the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) in all seasons except monsoon. Even during the monsoon, air quality failed to improve fully. Assam had 21 districts and Tripura had six districts that still broke PM2.5 limits.

The situation looks worse when compared nationally. Assam has 11 districts and Tripura three districts among the 50 most polluted in the country. Assam also appeared in the top five most polluted states during winter, summer, and even monsoon.

Other northeastern states are also under stress. Meghalaya and Nagaland showed near-total non-compliance with air quality standards. Average PM2.5 levels in states like Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, and Arunachal Pradesh were all above safe limits.

CREA says the Northeast needs urgent and local solutions. City-only plans will not work here. The region needs strong emission controls, better monitoring, and policies that look at the whole airshed.

The report is a clear warning. Clean air action must move beyond seasons and cities. For Assam and Tripura, the crisis is constant, and the response must be too.

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