Parts of Delhi covered in smog, air quality remains poor

Parts of Delhi covered in smog, air quality remains poor; is capital on coldwave alert?

As the winter spell sets in for the season, air quality in the national capital remains in the poor category, with a layer of smog covering parts of the metropolitan city and reducing visibility.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi's AQI stood at 365 as of 7 am on Sunday.

Of the city's 39 air-monitoring stations, 26 recorded pollution levels in the very poor range, while the remaining 13 fell into the poor category.

Locations reporting very poor readings included RK Puram (326), Punjabi Bagh (320), Chandni Chowk (308), Rohini (341), Vivek Vihar (304), Bawana (352), Sirifort (318), Wazirpur (337), Anand Vihar (327), Ashok Vihar (325) and Sonia Vihar (320). Stations registering poor air quality included Alipur (282), NSIT Dwarka (239), Mandir Marg (212), IGI Airport (227), Aya Nagar (263) and eight other sites.

Under CPCB guidelines, an AQI of 0–50 is rated as “good”, 51–100 as “satisfactory”, 101–200 as “moderate”, 201–300 as “poor”, 301–400 as “very poor”, and 401–500 as “severe”.

Pollution levels fluctuated noticeably through the week. The city recorded an AQI of 279 on Sunday, rose slightly to 304 on Monday, climbed further to 372 on Tuesday, and settled at 342 on Wednesday. The trend remained in the very poor category on Thursday (304) and Friday (327).

Data from the Decision Support System for Delhi indicated that transport within the capital contributed the largest share to local emissions at 14.8%. Industrial activity in Delhi and nearby regions accounted for 7.3%, residential sources for 3.6%, and construction for 2%.

In neighbouring NCR districts, Jhajjar contributed 13.9% to the pollution load, while Rohtak added 5.2%.

How cold will Sunday get for Delhi residents?

Delhi shivered on Friday when the city was placed under a “Yellow Alert” for coldwave conditions by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). By Sunday (7 December), the alert had been lifted, although the winter chill continued across the capital.

On Sunday, temperatures are expected to fall to around 9°C, with daytime highs reaching nearly 25°C. The IMD has forecast partly cloudy skies, and although cold conditions persist, the coldwave warning has now been withdrawn.

Source: LiveMint
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