Gurugram’s air ‘very poor’ for 8th consecutive day, but sees slight improvement

As per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) bulletin, the city recorded an average Air quality Index (AQI) reading of 310 on Monday, better than the AQI reading of 364 on Sunday. Since November 14, the city’s AQI has been in the “very poor” category

For the eighth consecutive day, Gurugram’s air quality remained in the “very poor” category on Monday, but recorded a marginal improvement due to increased wind speed, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Weather department officials said they expected the city’s air quality to improve further on Tuesday due to strong surface winds forecasted by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) bulletin. (Representational image/HT Archive)

Weather department officials said they expected the city’s air quality to improve further on Tuesday due to strong surface winds forecasted by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) bulletin.

As per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) bulletin, the city recorded an average Air quality Index (AQI) reading of 310 on Monday, better than the AQI reading of 364 on Sunday. Since November 14, the city’s AQI has been in the “very poor” category.

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

Kuldeep Singh, regional officer (north) for Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), said that increased wind speed, which helped in the dispersion of pollutants, along with the implementation of Graded Response Action Plan (Grap) measures, resulted in a marginal improvement in air quality. He said the AQI was likely to improve further on Tuesday.

“We are closely monitoring the weather pattern. Favourable weather conditions, i.e. high surface airspeed helped disperse pollutants on Monday. High wind speed is forecasted on Tuesday and we are anticipating this will help improve the air further. Simultaneously, all agencies concerned are continuing with the enforcement of Grap measures, especially during the night to ensure localised air pollution is kept in check,” said Singh.

The IMD bulletin also stated that the air quality is likely to remain in the “moderate” to “poor” category on Tuesday and the “poor” category on Wednesday. The bulletin added that for the next five days, the air quality is likely to remain in the “poor” category with PM2.5 being the predominant pollutant in the region. PM 2.5 are fine, inhalable particulate matter with diameters that are generally 2.5 microns, or about 30 times smaller than a strand of human hair.

According to IMD, Gurugram on Monday recorded a maximum temperature of 25 degrees Celsius (°C) and a and minimum temperature of 10°C with a generally clear sky.

The minimum temperature on Tuesday is expected to come down by a degree, the first time the city is likely to record a single-digit temperature this season.