Delhi records lowest temperature of the season; AQI remains ‘severe’

Delhi’s minimum temperature was recorded at 15.6°C, which was two degrees above normal but the lowest so far this season

Delhi recorded the lowest temperature of the season on Friday as the air quality remained in the ‘severe’ category for a third consecutive day.

Delhi’s average air quality index (AQI) stood at 411 (severe) at 9am on Friday. (HT Photo)

Stage-3 measures of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) came into force across the National Capital Region (NCR) on Friday too.

Delhi’s average air quality index (AQI) stood at 411 (severe) at 9am on Friday, which was a marginal dip from Thursday’s 4pm reading of 424 (severe). Though wind speeds are expected to pick up, fog in the early hours of the day, coupled with dropping temperature and low wind speed is making dispersion of pollutants difficult.

At 9am, 27 out of the 39 stations were in ‘severe’, with the highest average AQI recorded at Wazirpur (457).

Delhi’s minimum temperature was recorded at 15.6°C, which was two degrees above normal but the lowest so far this season. It was 16.1°C a day earlier.

With cold northwesterly winds blowing, a further dip in minimum to 14°C by November 19 and to 13°C by November 20 is likely, India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasts show.

Moderate fog was witnessed across the city with Palam reporting a minimum visibility of 500 metres at 6:30am, while the lowest it fell to at Safdarjung was 400 metres at 7am. The lowest visibility in the city was 300 metres on Thursday and zero on Wednesday.

A Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) sub-committee on the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) met on Thursday and reviewed Delhi’s air quality, announcing stage-3 measures would come into force across Delhi-NCR from 8 am on Friday.

Stage-3 of GRAP includes a total of 11 restrictive measures, focusing both on vehicular emissions and construction & demolition activities (C&D). It bans all private C&D works across the city, bans all stone crushers and mining across NCR and further restricts BS-4 or lower light motor vehicles (LMVs) from plying in Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Gautam Budh Nagar. Further, there are restrictions on the movement of BS-3 and lower medium goods vehicles (MGVs) and Light Commercial Vehicles (LCVs) from plying in the capital.

Stage-3 also asks Interstate buses from NCR to be stopped from entering Delhi if they are not CNG, electric or higher than BS-IV diesel. Further, CAQM said NCR state governments can take a call to discontinue physical classes till class five in the region, taking them online instead.

Major construction and demolition projects like railway projects, metro, airport, ISBTs, national and defence-related projects, healthcare facilities, linear projects such as roads and flyovers and sanitation projects will continue under this category, GRAP states.