Delhi’s air quality worsened on Sunday as weak winds trapped pollutants, raising the overall AQI to 366 in the “very poor” category with 15 monitoring stations recording readings above 400 in the “severe” category.
The PM2.5 concentration stood at 189.6 micrograms per cubic metre and PM10 at 316. PM2.5 refers to fine inhalable particles with diameters that are 2.5 micrometres or smaller, while PM10 includes slightly larger particles up to 10 micrometres in diameter, as per CPCB.
At such levels, these pollutants can cause breathing discomfort, especially among people with lung or heart diseases, children and the elderly. The overall AQI rose sharply from 303 recorded a day earlier, Central Pollution Control Board data showed.
The 15 monitoring stations recorded severe levels are Ashok Vihar, Bawana, Burari, Chandni Chowk, Mathura Road, Dwarka, Nehru Nagar, Okhla, Punjabi Bagh, Pusa, RK Puram, Rohini, Siri Fort, Vivek Vihar and Wazirpur, according to data from the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the CPCB.
According to the Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) for Delhi, the wind speed dropped below 8 kmph from the northwest direction during the evening and night hours, reducing the dispersion of pollutants. It added that a ventilation index lower than 6,000 m ²/s and wind speeds less than 10 kmph are unfavourable for pollutant dispersal.
The air quality is likely to remain in the “very poor” category till November 4, the AQEWS said. Three monitoring stations in the city recorded “severe” air quality with readings above 400, with Wazirpur reporting the highest level at 413. Another 28 stations registered “very poor” air quality with readings above 300, as per CPCB’s Sameer app.
Neighbouring cities in the National Capital Region (NCR) also reported “very poor” air quality — Ghaziabad (351), Gurugram (357), Noida (348) and Greater Noida (340). Faridabad, however, recorded a “poor” AQI of 215.
The maximum temperature was recorded at 30.7 degrees Celsius, 0.5 degrees below the seasonal average, while the minimum settled at 16.8 degrees Celsius, 1.5 degrees above normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The humidity stood at 75 per cent at 5.30 PM.
The weather office has forecast shallow fog on Monday, with the maximum and minimum temperatures likely to hover around 30 and 15 degrees Celsius, respectively. A ban on the entry of commercial goods vehicles not registered here and not compliant with BS-III or lower emission standards came into force in the national Capital on November 1.
Currently, restrictions under the second stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) a phase-wise plan to combat toxic air, are in place in the national Capital.
