Rawalpindi AQI Today: Check Punjab EPA's 3 Rawalpindi Stations Live, Free (6 November: 105)

Short answer: Check Rawalpindi's AQI free on Punjab EPA's official dashboard at aqi.punjab.gov.pk, which updates every hour. At 2 pm on 6 November 2026 it put Rawalpindi at 105, "Moderate", with DC Office Rawalpindi the highest of its 3 stations at 109. Rawalpindi's 105 was 48 points below Lahore's 153 at the same hour.

Rawalpindi has three Punjab EPA monitoring stations: at the Deputy Commissioner's office, at ARID University and at the Drug Testing Laboratory. Islamabad is not on this dashboard. It is monitored by the federal Pak-EPA. Below is how to read them, the 6 November figures as a worked example, what each band means and what to do on a bad day. We read every figure on the dashboard ourselves at about 3 pm on 6 November.

Rawalpindi AQI at 2 pm on 6 November 2026 was 105

Punjab EPA's dashboard showed Rawalpindi at 105 in its 2 pm reading on 6 November, in the Moderate band of the province's scale. Each station reports its own AQI along with PM2.5 and PM10, the two kinds of dust that drive smog readings.

All three Rawalpindi stations sat close together, from 98 to 109. The Drug Testing Laboratory station, at 98, was the only one in the Satisfactory band, and its main pollutant was PM10, the coarser road and building dust. The other two were driven by PM2.5, the fine smoke-type dust.

PM2.5 is fine dust, smaller than 2.5 micrometres, that can reach deep into the lungs. PM10 is coarser dust, up to 10 micrometres, from roads, building work and soil. µg/m³ means micrograms in each cubic metre of air.

How to check Rawalpindi's AQI on the Punjab EPA dashboard

Open aqi.punjab.gov.pk in any phone browser. It is free and needs no login. The dashboard shows Lahore first, then ranks every Punjab city by AQI, so Rawalpindi is a short scroll away.

1. Open aqi.punjab.gov.pk and look for the "Last updated" time at the top, so you know which hour you are seeing.
2. Scroll to "AQI Based City Ranking" and find Rawalpindi in the list. The number beside it is the city figure.
3. Open the Map section to see each monitoring station plotted across Punjab, including Rawalpindi's 3.
4. Open the Health Advisory page to see what that band means for you and for vulnerable family members.
5. Use "Set AQI Alert", choose Rawalpindi as the district and allow browser notifications if you want a warning when the air gets worse.

The dashboard also links an Android app. Our guide to checking air quality on Punjab's AQI site covers the app and the Lahore views in more detail.

The city figure is the average of its stations

We checked this ourselves on 6 November. Rawalpindi's city AQI of 105 matches the plain average of its stations: (109 + 107 + 98) / 3 = 104.7. The same held in that reading for Multan, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi and Gujranwala, and for Lahore using the ten stations that reported at 2 pm.

That has a practical meaning. If you live next to the highest station, your air is likely worse than the city number. If you live near the lowest, it may be better. On days when one station is faulty, as a zero reading suggests, the average can also mislead. So check the station table, not just the headline figure.

Readings also swing a lot in a day. At 3 am on 5 November the same dashboard had Lahore at 395, while at 2 pm on 6 November it was 153. Our Punjab AQI report for 6 November ranks all 35 cities at the same hour.

For the capital, use Pak-EPA's own figures. Our guide to Islamabad's AQI on Pak-EPA shows where they are published and how they compare.

What each AQI band means, in Punjab EPA's own words

Punjab EPA uses seven bands, from Good (0 to 50) to Hazardous (401 to 500). Its advice gets stricter at each step. The table sums up what the health advisory page says for everyone and for vulnerable groups.

Vulnerable groups are children, older people, pregnant women and anyone with asthma, lung or heart disease. Our guides on which mask works in smog and protecting pregnant women and heart and asthma patients add NIH's advice.

Rawalpindi compared with nearby cities

Rawalpindi had some of the cleanest air on the plains on 6 November, ranked 27th of 35. Murree read higher at 117, but there the main pollutant was ozone, not dust. Chakwal was the cleanest reliable reading in the region at 73. Jhelum's 8 is doubtful because its station showed no dust readings.

Nearby readings help when you travel. If the city you are driving to is a band worse, plan the trip for the middle of the day and keep car windows closed in heavy traffic.

What to do on a bad air day in Rawalpindi

Check the reading before you go out, cut heavy outdoor effort once it passes 150, and keep children and older relatives indoors when it passes 200. Report smoke sources you see through Punjab's official complaint app.

• Keep doors and windows shut on high readings, and open them when the AQI drops.
• Wear a well-fitted N95 or KN95 mask outdoors when the band is Unhealthy or worse.
• Report crop burning, smoky kilns or smoking vehicles on the Green Punjab app. Our page on crop burning fines explains the penalties.
• Watch for school orders. Our guide to checking smog school closures shows where they appear.

See a doctor if a child breathes fast, or anyone has a cough that will not settle, chest tightness or wheezing. If someone has chest pain or cannot breathe, go to an emergency department at once; Holy Family Hospital Rawalpindi's timings and emergency are on our page.

Common questions

Where can I check Rawalpindi's AQI today?

On Punjab EPA's official dashboard, aqi.punjab.gov.pk. It is free, updates hourly and ranks Rawalpindi with every other Punjab city.

What was Rawalpindi's AQI on 6 November 2026?

105 at 2 pm, in the Moderate band. The highest station was DC Office Rawalpindi at 109.

How many monitoring stations does Rawalpindi have?

Three on the Punjab EPA dashboard: DC Office Rawalpindi, ARID University Rawalpindi and Drug Testing Laboratory Rawalpindi.

Is the Punjab EPA scale the same as other AQI apps?

Not exactly. Punjab EPA uses its own seven bands, with 101 to 150 called Moderate. Other apps may use different names or sensors, so the official dashboard is the figure to rely on in Punjab.

Is Rawalpindi's AQI the same as Islamabad's?

No. Rawalpindi is measured by Punjab EPA. Islamabad is measured by the federal Pak-EPA, which publishes its own figures. Our guide to Islamabad's AQI shows where to find them.

How often does the reading change?

Every hour. Check the "Last updated" time on the dashboard, because night and early morning readings are often far higher than the afternoon.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked on 6 November 2026 at about 3 pm PKT, when the Punjab EPA AQI dashboard showed its 2 pm reading. Station values, city ranks and the map are from that dashboard. The bands and advice are from its health advisory page. The station averages are our own arithmetic. Readings change every hour, so treat the figures here as a worked example and check the live dashboard.