Delhi pollution level soars, 13 stations in ‘red’

Delhi residents experienced a fourth consecutive day of ‘poor’ air quality on Thursday, with the number of monitoring stations in the ‘red zone’ increasing to 13, compared to just two the previous day.

These 13 stations — Ashok Vihar, Dwarka Sector 8, Patparganj, Punjabi Bagh, Rohini, Bawana, Burari, Jahangirpuri, Mundka, Narela, Okhla Phase 2, Shadipur, and Vivek Vihar — reported readings exceeding 300, as per data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The city’s overall air quality remained in the ‘poor’ category for the fourth straight day, with a 24-hour average of 285 recorded by 4:00 PM.

Thursday saw a cloudy sky, with the maximum temperature reaching 36.2 degrees Celsius, three degrees above normal, according to the weather department.

Relative humidity varied between 91% and 55%, while the minimum temperature was recorded at 20.3 degrees Celsius, slightly above the season’s average.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted clear skies for Friday, with temperatures expected to range between 35 degrees Celsius and 18 degrees Celsius.

Also Read: Are sensors meant to measure Delhi’s air pollution data really reliable enough?

Air Quality Index (AQI) values between 0-50 are considered “good,” 51-100 “satisfactory”, 101-200 “moderate”, 201-300 “poor”, 301-400 “very poor”, and 401-500 “severe”.

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced that special campaigns for pollution control would be launched through the Green War Room to monitor the 13 pollution hotspots. He also stated that the environment department would hold an emergency meeting on Friday with key agencies such as the Public Works Department (PWD), Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the transport department, and Delhi Traffic Police.

(With inputs from PTI)