Delhi’s air quality plunges to ‘severe’ category, first time this season

The air quality in New Delhi’s Anand Vihar was recorded in the “severe” category on Friday due to poor dispersion of pollutants owing to weak winds, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

According to the last updated Air Quality Index (AQI) at 3pm, Anand Vihar’s average AQI was 455 which falls in the ‘severe’ category on the scale up to 500. At 7am, the AQI in the area was 455 – the highest in the season.

The PM 10 level touched 500, the highest on the scale, while the PM 2.5 was recorded at 455. The average PM 10 level was 458, while the average PM 2.5 was 400.

The ‘severe’ category affects healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing diseases, according to the CPCB.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered “good”, 51 and 100 “satisfactory”, 101 and 200 “moderate”, 201 and 300 “poor”, 301 and 400 “very poor”, and 401 and 500 “severe”.

The national capital witnessed a clear morning on Friday with the minimum temperature settling a notch below normal at 14.6 degree Celsius. The relative humidity at 8.30am was 90 per cent, the weather office said.

However, the air quality deteriorated from 333 on Thursday to 346 at 9.30am on Friday, the CPCB data showed.

Anand Vihar monitoring station recorded the AQI in the “severe” category with an index value of 443 at 9.20am on Friday.

Among the monitoring stations that recorded “very poor” air quality were Wazirpur (380), Patparganj (363), Vivek Vihar (397), Punjabi Bagh (370) and Jahangirpuri (397).

Delhi’s neighbouring city Noida saw the maximum PM 10 at 461. Noida’s average AQI remains in the ‘very poor’ category at 389.

According to the IMD, the sky will remain clear through the day and the maximum temperature is likely to settle around 32 degree Celsius. The maximum temperature on Thursday had settled at 32.3 degree Celsius, a notch above normal.