AQI Inches Towards ‘Very Poor’ As Pollution Levels Soar Ahead of Diwali

New Delhi: Delhi’s air quality approached the “very poor” category on Sunday as pollution levels continued to rise. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the city recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 296 at 4 pm, placing it in the “poor” category. An AQI reading of 301 to 400 falls into the “very poor” category.

12 out of 38 monitoring stations in the national capital reported air quality to be in the “very poor” range.

Anand Vihar recorded the highest AQI at 430, followed by Wazirpur (364), Vivek Vihar (351), Dwarka (335) and RK Puram (323).

Other areas like Siri Fort, Dilshad Garden and Jahangirpuri reported an AQI of 318. CPCB data showed that Punjabi Bagh had 313, Nehru Nagar had 310, Ashok Vihar had 305 and Bawana had 304.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the maximum temperature in the city was recorded at 33.3 degrees Celsius, 0.9 degrees above the season average, while the minimum temperature was recorded at 20.6 degrees Celsius, 2.2 degrees above normal.

The relative humidity was 71 percent at 8.30 in the morning and rose to 91 percent at 17.30 in the evening.

While IMD has predicted fog for Monday morning, maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to hover around 33 degrees Celsius and 21 degrees Celsius respectively.

An AQI of 0 to 50 is considered “good,” 51 to 100 “satisfactory,” 101 to 200 “moderate,” 201 to 300 “poor,” 301 to 400 “very poor,” and 401 to 500 “severe.”