No respite for Delhi as air quality remains ‘very poor’

Delhi breathed ‘very poor’ air on Friday as the Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 370, a marginal drop from 391 the day before, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Earlier, officials predicted that the air quality could slip into the ‘severe’ category.

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

A total of 23 monitoring stations in Delhi recorded ‘very poor’ air quality while 13 recorded ‘severe’ pollution levels, the CPCB’s Sameer app showed.

Wazirpur recorded the highest AQI at 442. R K Puram, Bawana, Anand Vihar, Jahangir Puri and Rohini recorded readings above 400.

Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 11.2 degrees Celsius, 1.1 notches below normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The relative humidity stood at 97 per cent.

The IMD has forecast mainly clear skies during the day. The maximum temperature is expected to settle at 27 degrees Celsius.