Overnight rains, winds bring AQI a notch lower to ‘very poor’ in Delhi NCR

The IMD said that intermittent drizzle may continue through the day, which is likely to further help settle the harmful pollutants

A brief spell of overnight rainfall temporarily brought down the air pollution levels of the national capital on Friday under the ‘very poor’ category after days of being ‘severe’.

People commute early morning after a short spell of rainfall on Friday in the National Capital Region. (Sakib Ali/ HT Photo)

Delhi’s AQI at 8am stood at 393, down from 437 at 4pm on Thursday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The India Meteorological Department’s regional meteorological centre in Delhi said the wind direction was predominantly southeasterly in the early hours of Friday, and that intermittent drizzle may continue through the day, which is likely to further help settle the harmful pollutants.

The AQI is expected to stay in the ‘very poor’ category on Friday.

The forecast by the Early Warning System (EWS) for Delhi on Thursday, however, said that the air was likely to stay ‘severe’ on Friday too.

“Delhi’s AQI is likely to remain in the ‘severe’ category on November 10. The air quality is likely to improve after that and should be ‘very poor’ on November 11 and 12. The outlook for the subsequent six days shows the air quality is likely to be between ‘very poor’ and ‘severe’,” the EWS said on Thursday.