Delhi’s 3-day ‘severe’ AQI streak ends, air quality improves to ‘very poor’

Delhi’s three-day run of ‘severe’ air pollution ended on Tuesday morning, with the city’s average Air Quality Index (AQI) showing a marginal improvement and settling in the ‘very poor’ category at 395.

Despite the improvement, pollution levels remained worrying across monitoring stations.

Out of the total stations reporting, 23 were still in the ‘severe’ category, 14 in ‘very poor’, and 1 in ‘poor’, according to data from the CPCB Sameer app.

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Wazirpur recorded the worst air quality with an AQI of 445, followed closely by Anand Vihar at 444 and Jahangirpuri at 443.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) classification, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered ‘good’; 51 to 100 is ‘satisfactory’; 101 to 200 is ‘moderate’; 201 to 300 is ‘poor’; 301 to 400 is ‘very poor’; and 401 to 500 is ‘severe’.

The city had experienced three consecutive days of ‘severe’ air pollution. On Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, the AQI exceeded the 400 mark, prompting the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to implement Stage 4 restrictions.

Meanwhile, the Air Quality Warning System has forecast that Delhi’s air quality is likely to remain in the ‘very poor’ category on Tuesday and continue at similar levels over the next two days.

Weather conditions provided little relief, with the minimum temperature in Delhi recorded at 7.2 degrees Celsius.

Station-specific data indicated minimum temperatures of 8.8 degrees Celsius at Palam, 9.0 degrees Celsius at Ridge, 8.0 degrees Celsius at Ayanagar, and 7.6 degrees Celsius at Lodhi Road, while Safdarjung noted the city’s lowest minimum at 7.2 degrees Celsius.

The maximum temperature is expected to reach 24 degrees Celsius, accompanied by moderate fog.