Delhi woke up under a thick shroud of haze and fog on Thursday morning, locking in pollutants and worsening the city's air quality from "poor" in recent days to the "very poor" category.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reported an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 357 for the national capital, up from 279 the previous day. This air quality decline came with sharply reduced visibility in many areas, as fog and still winds kept pollutants trapped near the ground.
According to the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi, the city's ventilation index—a measure of the atmosphere's pollutant-dispersing capacity—stayed below the favourable threshold of 6,000 m²/s.
Weak winds of less than 10 kmph and thick fog have prevented pollutants from dispersing, resulting in a hazy sky, it stated.
At 7.30 am, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported visibility of 1,000 metres in Palam and 800 metres in Safdarjung, both experiencing calm wind conditions. Areas such as Kartavya Path, Anand Vihar, Burari and Akshardham were shrouded in fog during the early morning hours.
Vivek Vihar and Anand Vihar recorded "severe" air quality levels with AQI readings of 415 and 408, respectively. As many as 33 monitoring stations across Delhi reported "very poor" air quality with readings above 300, CPCB data showed.
An AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good', 51 to 100 'satisfactory', 101 to 200 'moderate', 201 to 300 'poor', 301 to 400 'very poor' and 401 to 500 'severe', according to the CPCB classification.
The minimum temperature settled at 20.1 degrees Celsius, four notches above normal, while the humidity stood at 90 per cent at 8.30 am. The maximum temperature is likely to hover around 30 degrees Celsius, with shallow fog expected during the evening, the IMD said.
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