Delhi continues to suffocate as 'severe' air quality persists

NEW DELHI: Air quality in the Capital, after a two-day respite, continued to remain in the "severe" category on Saturday, as western disturbances in the region brought down the wind speed, effectively trapping pollutants within Delhi.

- Aheli Das

Thursday's improvement in AQI had broken a five-day streak of "severe" air that the Capital had been experiencing, which came as a result of an increase in wind speed.

The prevailing meteorological conditions also led to a rise in the temperature, with Delhi clocking a maximum temperature of 29.4°C, which was over 2°C higher than the day before and three degrees above the normal for this time of the year, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The air quality index (AQI) of Delhi was 412 ("severe") at 4pm, according to the 24-hour average data shared by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in its daily bulletin. This was markedly above the AQIs of 371 ("very poor") and 393 ("very poor") recorded at the same time on Thursday and Friday, respectively, even as the AQI started deteriorating on Friday night, reaching 414 ("severe") around 10pm. However, by Saturday night, the AQI improved to "very poor" level, albeit with marginal improvement, clocking a reading of 395, on the cusp of "severe".

CPCB classifies AQI between 0 and 50 as "good", between 51 and 100 as "satisfactory", between 101 and 200 as "moderate", between 201 and 300 as "poor", between 301 and 400 as "very poor", and over 400 as "severe".

Neighbours fare better