NEW DELHI: A significant improvement is likely in the national capital’s air quality over the next two days due to favourable wind speed, a central government air quality monitoring agency said on Friday.
The Ministry of Earth Sciences’ air quality monitor, SAFAR, also said that the share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution was 19 per cent on Friday which should reflect favourably in terms of the city’s AQI.
According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences’ air quality monitoring agency, SAFAR, the share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution was 36 per cent on Thursday, the maximum so far this season.
Meanwhile, the city’s AQI was recorded in the ‘very poor’ category on Friday.
Delhi recorded a 24-hour average AQI of 374 on Friday. It was 395 on Thursday, 297 on Wednesday, 312 on Tuesday, 353 on Monday, and 349 on Sunday. Several monitoring stations, including at Shadipur (417), Patparganj (406), Bawana (447) and Mundka (427), recorded air quality in the ‘severe’ category.
On Thursday, PM10 levels in Delhi-NCR peaked to 424 microgram per cubic meter (‘g/m3) at 10 am, the highest this season so far, according to CPCB data.
PM10 levels below 100 ‘g/m3 are considered safe in India. The number of farm fires in neighbouring states also dropped from 2,912 on Wednesday - the highest so far this season - to 1,143 on Thursday.
Delhi’s overall air quality index (AQI) has improved marginally as predicted and remains in the high end of the ‘very poor’ category, it said.
A significant improvement is predicted by November 1 and the air quality is likely to slip back into the ‘poor’ category, it said.
Stubble burning share on the wane
The Ministry of Earth Sciences’ air quality monitor, SAFAR, said that the share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution was 19 per cent on Friday which should reflect favourably in terms of the city’s AQI.
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