Toxic smog engulfs National Capital, air quality nears ‘severe’ category, AQI reaches…
Many monitoring stations in Delhi have reported alarming pollution levels. Anand Vihar recorded an AQI of 445, ITO 403, Wazirpur 433, Rohini 424 and Patparganj 424; This indicates widespread poor air quality across the city.
Delhi’s air quality remained critically poor on December 28, with the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) reaching 391 at 6 am, classified as ‘Very Poor’. As seen in many areas, visibility was reduced in the national capital due to dense fog.
Area based pollution level
Akshardham district was severely affected and AQI reached 445, which is classified as ‘Severe’ according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). India Gate also faced similar conditions and recorded an AQI of 378, classified as ‘Very Poor’. Anand Vihar, a pollution-prone district, saw the AQI rise again to 445, which is classified as ‘Severe’.
Many monitoring stations in Delhi have reported alarming pollution levels. Anand Vihar recorded an AQI of 445, ITO 403, Wazirpur 433, Rohini 424 and Patparganj 424; This indicates widespread poor air quality across the city.
The CPCB classifies air quality as ‘good’ (0–50), ‘satisfactory’ (51–100), ‘fair’ (101–200), ‘poor’ (201–300), ‘very poor’ (301–400) and ‘severe’ (401–500). On December 27, most parts of Delhi remained between very poor and severe; This underlined that winter pollution in the capital continues.
IMD warning
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert, warning of dense fog and cold wave-like conditions in the national capital on Sunday morning. Experts said this will keep wind speeds slow and keep AQI at the same level, as mentioned in an earlier HT report.
“The wind speed on Saturday was very low. The average speed was around 4-5 km per hour; the wind speed reaches 8-9 km per hour only for a few hours and drops again in the evening. As a result, Delhi has seen an increase in pollution. Similar wind conditions will continue until January 1, 2026 due to the impact of a western disturbance,” said Mahesh Palawat, vice president of private weather forecaster Skymet.
Delhi’s air quality is expected to remain “very poor” for the next few days, according to a bulletin prepared by the Delhi Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS).
