Delhi’s air quality improves, remains in ‘moderate’ category; colder days ahead

On the weather front, the city is likely to witness clear sky on Friday with a minimum temperature of around 5°C and a maximum of 23°C

Delhi’s air quality continued to remain in the ‘moderate’ category on Friday morning, recording an air quality index (AQI) reading of 197 at 7am.

The AQI is in the moderate category for the fourth consecutive day. (HT photo | Sylvester Tamang)

The AQI is in the moderate category for the fourth consecutive day.

The average 24-hour AQI on Thursday was 189.

The central pollution control board (CPCB) classifies an AQI between 0-50 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”.

On the weather front, the city is likely to witness clear sky on Friday with a minimum temperature of around 5°C and a maximum of 23°C.

On Thursday, the minimum temperature was 6.4°C, two notches below normal, and the maximum temperature of 23.4°C.

On Thursday, the minimum and maximum temperatures in Delhi fell to their lowest so far this season, with weather department officials predicting even colder days and nights ahead because of clear skies and northwesterly winds.

Officials at the India Meteorological Department (IMD) attributed the cooler nights largely to cold winds and clear skies, which help the heat escape after sunset.

These cold winds also meant Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) was kept under check, remaining in the “moderate” category for a fourth consecutive day.