‘Poor’ air quality in Delhi, NCR after overnight dust-raising winds
The average Air Quality Index (AQI) was in the “poor” category on Thursday, primarily due to the dust, which spiked the PM 10 concentration in the national capital
Visibility dipped and the air quality deteriorated to the “poor” category in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) due to overnight dust-raising winds, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Thursday. The IMD added that a gradual improvement was expected through the day.
The visibility dipped from 4,500 metres to 1,200 metres on Wednesday night. (PTI)
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The average Air Quality Index (AQI) was in the “poor” category on Thursday, primarily due to the dust, which spiked the PM 10 concentration. The average AQI was 249 (poor) at 9am compared to 135 (moderate) a day earlier.
IMD senior scientist RK Jenamani said the dust-raising winds were reported around 10pm on Wednesday. He added that the visibility dipped from 4,500 metres to 1,200 metres. “There were sudden gusty winds of 30-40 km/hr... This spell became almost calm with winds of 3-7 km/hr. The visibility remained poor between 1,200 metres and 1,500 metres at Safdarjung and Palam with dust in the air,” said Jenamani.
IMD scientist Krishna Mishra said the visibility was at 1,500 metres at 9am, improving from around 1,300 metres an hour earlier. “Westerly winds of around 10 km/hr are blowing, with a gradual improvement expected,” he said.
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A partly cloudy sky was expected on Thursday evening after another warm day. The maximum was likely to hover between 40 and 42°C, compared to 40.4°C on Wednesday. Sustained winds of 15-25 km/hr were likely during the day. They were expected to occasionally touch up to 35 km/hr.
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A partly cloudy sky was expected on Thursday evening after another warm day. The maximum was likely to hover between 40 and 42°C, compared to 40.4°C on Wednesday. Sustained winds of 15-25 km/hr were likely during the day. They were expected to occasionally touch up to 35 km/hr.
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Light rain and gusty winds of up to 50 km/hr were expected on Friday. Delhi has recorded 91.2mm monthly rainfall this month—nearly three times the long-period average of 30.7mm for May.
Jasjeev Gandhiok is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times, where he covers environment, climate change, the clean energy transition and wildlife at the National Bureau. Gandhiok has over a decade of experience in journalism and is based in Delhi. He has reported extensively on Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). This includes the region's air pollution woes, a polluted Yamuna and on urban wildlife still thriving in the region. He joined HT in October 2021. Prior to that, he had five-year stint at The Times of India in Delhi, where he also covered Delhi, with a focus on environment and wildlife. Gandhiok has covered some recent events around the Capital too, ranging from the farmers' protests, the northeast Delhi riots and the CAA-NRC protests, reporting from the ground on all of these. He also travels across the country to report on how environment and climate change impact everyday life, while also writing on endangered species. His reports in 2019 on toxic leachate from Delhi's landfills led to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) taking suo motu cognisance and ultimately asking the state government to start bio-mining to flatten and remove all three landfills in the capital. He also closely tracks the implementation of government policies on climate, renewable energy and environmental protection. His focus remains on impactful, public-interest journalism which explains how environmental decisions affect people's everyday lives.
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