E-Paper
Internet abuzz with 999+ Delhi AQI pics. What do monitors show?
Screenshots claiming AQI at 999 have been circulating on social media since Diwali, when firecrackers were burst, considered a big cause behind pollution.
Amid rising air pollution concerns in the national capital, social media is abuzz with screenshots claiming that the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi and its surrounding areas has reached 999 and above.
These screenshots seem to be old. They have been circulating on social media since Diwali, when firecrackers were burst, considered a big cause of the AQI spike in Delhi every year.
Even as people claim that the AQI has shot up to 999, these assertions are not supported by official data from monitoring stations.
“AQI jumps to 999 from 194 in Delhi due to Diwali firecrackers. It's more than 999 but this meter could measure up to 999 only,” one of the posts on X read. The user had shared a video from Diwali celebrations, when people were bursting crackers outside.
The clip shows a person holding a device that purportedly records the AQI shooting up to 999 when taken outside to the balcony. “In 1900 AQI, it's equivalent to smoking 100 cigerettes per day [sic],” the user further wrote.
AAP MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj later shared the same clip, alleging the BJP-led Delhi government was purposely hiding actual AQI data from the public. “AQI exceeding 999. The government is hiding AQI data, but people's own pollution monitoring devices are showing the truth. Someone sent this video. The question is, why does the government want people to fall ill?” Bharadwaj wrote.
Similar posts claiming AQI levels at 999 were made by several accounts on social media.
AAP leader Sanjay Singh had also shared a screenshot showing AQI levels at 1991 in Naraina Village on October 20.
What monitoring stations' data shows
Even as claims on AQI climbing to 999 have long been made this season, no such data has officially been recorded yet.
One of the posts shared on Thursday morning showed readings from 9 am by https://aqicn.org/, but on exploring data on the portal, HT.com did not find the realtime data on Delhi-NCR AQI to be 999 or above. Even the worst AQI for the day remained under 500.
Meanwhile, data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) showed AQI reading at 278 this morning. Air quality remained in the “poor” to “very poor” category across most areas in Delhi.
Jahangirpuri recorded an AQI of 284, while ITO touched 295. In West Delhi, Mundka reported “very poor” air quality with an AQI of 305, and Rohini recorded 296.
In North Delhi, Narela registered an AQI of 302. Meanwhile, in the neighbouring NCR region, Noida’s Sector 62 logged an AQI of 215 at 5 am, and Ghaziabad’s Sanjay Nagar recorded 265.
Even the IQAir data for Delhi is very far from the 999 figure. The portal has currently ranked Delhi fifth in world's most polluted cities, with AQI at 166.
However, further deterioration in air quality is expected over the next few days, with pollution levels likely to slip into the 'very poor' category across most areas.
