Delhi Air Quality update: Bad news for Delhiites as air quality deteriorates again, AQI slips to…, worst AQI recorded in…

Delhi Air Quality update: Delhi’s air quality deteriorated on Friday as the air quality index (AQI) slipped back into the ‘very poor’ bracket, ending two days of brief respite for the city’s nearly 34 million residents, when pollution levels had witnessed a marginal improvement.

Delhi air quality slips back to ‘very poor’

According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, Delhi recorded a 24-hour average AQI of 332, in the ‘very poor’ category, at 4 pm on Friday, with several monitoring stations logging AQI levels in the ‘severe’ bracket.

In contrast, the national capital had logged an average AQI of 271 on Wednesday, which improved to 234, in the ‘poor’ category’ on Thursday, bringing much-needed relief for Delhiites who have endured hazardous air quality since early October.

As per data CPCB’s SAMEER app, eight out of Delhi’s 38 functional air quality monitoring stations logged AQI readings above the 400 mark, in the ‘severe’ bracket, including Anand Vihar, Bawana, DTU, Jahangirpuri, Narela, Nehru Nagar, Rohini and Vivek Vihar. As many as 20 stations were in the very poor category, while nine stations recorded poor air quality, the data showed.

An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered good, 51–100 satisfactory, 101–200 moderate, 201–300 poor, 301–400 very poor and 401–500 severe, as per CPCB standards.

What were the main pollutants?

According to data from the Decision Support System (DSS) for Air Quality Management, vehicular emissions remained the largest contributor to Delhi’s pollution load on Friday, accounting for 19.7 per cent, followed by industries in Delhi and its peripheral areas at 10.1 per cent and residential sources at 4.9 per cent.

Among NCR districts, Jhajjar in Haryana contributed the highest share to Delhi’s pollution at 20 per cent, followed by Sonipat (4 per cent), Panipat (4 per cent), Gurugram (4 per cent) and Rohtak (2.3 per cent), the data showed).

Notably, the Air Quality Early Warning System forecast that Delhi air quality is likely to remain in the very poor category over the next six days.

Cold wave conditions persist in Delhi

On the weather front, Delhi logged a maximum temperature of 22.3 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, 1.6 degrees above normal, while the minimum temperature settled at 7.7 degrees Celsius, slightly below normal, with relative humidity levels ranged between 66 per cent and 100 per cent, as per the India(BHARAT) Meteorological Department (IMD).

The IMD forecasts a maximum and minimum temperature of around 22 degrees Celsius and 7 degrees Celsius, respectively, on Saturday, with dense fog expected over the next few days.