Strong winds help aid dispersal of pollutants

The air quality in the city improved significantly and entered the moderate category on Monday. Gurugram recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 101 — an improvement

The air quality in the city improved significantly and entered the moderate category on Monday. Gurugram recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 101 — an improvement from 239 (poor) on Sunday, as per the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) daily bulletin. Experts attributed the change in air quality to high-speed winds that aided the dispersal of pollutants.

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The level of ultrafine particulate matter having a diameter of 2.5 microns or less (PM 2.5), the city’s primary pollutant, was 235.45 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m³) on Monday, as per the CPCB’s air quality monitor at Vikas Sadan in Sector 11.

According to the early air quality warning system for Delhi-NCR, the air quality is likely to deteriorate marginally and remain in “moderate” to “poor” category on Tuesday and Wednesday. The air quality is likely to start deteriorating marginally from December 18 and remain in “poor” to the lower end of “very poor” category.

Kuldeep Srivastava, head of IMD’s regional weather forecasting centre, said that the temperature was expected to dip further on Tuesday. “The temperature will dip further in the coming days and might stay around 8 degrees,” said Srivastava.

On Monday, the city recorded a maximum temperature of 18 degrees Celsius, three degrees below Sunday’s 21 degrees. The minimum temperature settled at 10.5 degrees Celsius, same as the previous day. The minimum temperature is expected dip and hover around 8 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. The maximum temperature will likely stay around 23 degrees, as per IMD forecast. As per the weekly IMD forecast, clear skies will prevail on Tuesday.