NEW DELHI: Delhi’s air quality remained ‘very poor’ on Saturday, as the weather continued to be unfavourable for dispersion of pollutants. Met officials said the Air Quality Index (AQI) is likely to deteriorate further and touch the upper side of the very poor’ level.
The overall AQI on Saturday was recorded at 385, as per data released by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). An AQI between 100 to 200 comes under the ‘moderate’category, 201 and 300 is considered ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, while that between 401 and 500 is considered as ‘severe’.
The air quality in the city has been oscillating between very poor and severe categories over the last 10 days. Even on Saturday morning, it slipped briefly into ‘severe’ category, but turned ‘very poor’ by afternoon.
According to CPCB data, 15 areas recorded severe pollution, while another 21 recorded ‘very poor’ air quality.
“Air quality over Delhi is very poor. However, it may improve slightly as winds are relatively high during the day. But it is likely to deteriorate by tomorrow as winds speed is unlikely to remain the same and other meteorological conditions are already not favourable. Cold wave conditions are likely to persist at least for the next 2 days,” read a forecast on the portal of System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR).