NEW DELHI: The air quality index (AQI) in the national capital improved to ‘moderate’ category on Monday, owing to the record breaking December rain between December 27 and 28. This also brought in the chilly weather and the wind.
According to SAFAR-India, the AQI on Monday was recorded at 179, a far cry from the over-400 AQI it had witnessed just days ago. However, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted a clear sky along with strong winds. It said that the wind speed will gradually increase during the afternoon of December 30. Smog and dense fog was also predicted for the day.
The last day of the year is also expected to witness mainly clear skies, the IMD said, along with smog and dense fog in the morning, and a windy afternoon. As for the air quality, Alipur station recorded an AQI of 153, while Anand Vihar recorded 244, Ashok Vihar 193, Burari Crossing 130, Mathura Road 165, Dwarka Sector 8 222, IGI Airport 130, ITO 196, Jahangirpuri 233 and Shadipur 133.
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium 168, Lodhi Road 139, Mandir Marg 202, Najafgarh 126, North Campus DU 134, RK Puram 243, Shadipur 133, Siri Fort 289, and Wazirpur 189 among others.
The air quality between 0-50 is considered ‘good’, 51-100 ‘satisfactory’, 101-200 ‘moderate’, 201-300 ‘poor’, 301-400 ‘very poor’, and 401-500 ‘severe’ and ‘severe plus’
The IMD anticipates a fall in temperature by 4-6 degree Celsius over Uttar Pradesh in the next five days, and by 3-4 degree Celsius over Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi and Rajasthan in the next three days.
Delhi on Monday recorded 10.3 degrees Celsius minimum temperature, 3.5 notches above the normal for the season. The night temperatures are likely to drop in the coming days while the maximum temperature during the day will hover around 18 degrees.