Delhi’s ‘severe’ air quality likely to improve from Thursday

Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) stood at 413 at 4 pm on Tuesday against Monday’s 403. The air quality dipped to the ‘severe’ category on Monday after a gap of nearly a month.

Delhi’s air quality continued to remain in the ‘severe’ category for the second consecutive day on Tuesday but is likely to improve slightly from Thursday as wind speed expected to pick up, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said.

Delhi’s air quality is expected to improve from Thursday afer being in the ‘severe’ zone for two days. (Sonu Mehta/HT Photo)

Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) stood at 413 at 4 pm against Monday’s 403. The air quality dipped to the ‘severe’ category on Monday after a gap of nearly a month.

The AQI value at most of the city’s 36 monitoring stations, including Anand Vihar, Rohini, Narela, DTU, Bawana, Dwarka and Wazirpur, among others was recorded on the higher side of the ‘severe’ category.

The AQI had last entered the severe zone on November 13, recording 460. The air quality in NCR towns such as Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Noida was also in the severe zone.

On a scale of 0-500, AQI value between 401 and 500 is considered to be ‘severe’ level of pollution. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), such high levels of pollution can affect healthy people and seriously affect patients with lung and heart ailments.

According to CPCB officials, high levels of moisture and low wind speed in addition to local pollutants pushed the air quality to the ‘severe’ category.

“As per input received from IMD, wind direction will change from Thursday. At present, easterly winds, which are weak and bring moisture, were blowing, trapping pollutants. It is likely to change to north-westerly, which are strong and cold winds that help in the disbursal of pollutants,” said a senior official.

Even though light rain was expected on Tuesday, scientists at IMD said the moisture was not enough to trigger rain. Only traces could be expected over parts of the national capital region (NCR) on Wednesday.

On Thursday, the minimum temperature is expected to drop to 7 degrees Celsius while the maximum temperature is likely to drop to 21 degrees Celsius, both of which are a notch below the season’s average, IMD officials said.

On Tuesday, the maximum temperature was recorded at 22.3 degrees Celsius, a notch below normal. The minimum temperature settled at 8.8 degrees Celsius.

Taskforce directive

The multi-agency task force headed by CPCB has directed agencies to intensify anti-pollution measures in 15 pollution hot spots identified in Delhi by the board. Six other hot spots have been identified in NCR towns.

“As there are chances that the air quality could improve from Thursday, no new recommendations have been made. The agencies and CPCB teams on ground have been asked to intensify the ongoing measures in the hot spots,” said a senior CPCB official, who attended the meeting.

Monitoring saplings

Delhi environment and forest minister Imran Hussain has asked senior officials of the forest department to monitor saplings that were planted this year every fortnight. Hussain said he would monitor plantation sites every month.

The minister expressed concern over the Delhi Development Authority allegedly saying that the agency had planted only around 2.5 lakh saplings against a target of 8.75 lakh.

A senior official of DDA, however, said the agency had planted around 8.4 lkah saplings. At least 32 lakh saplings were planted this year.