NEW DELHI: The national capital continued to breathe toxic air on Wednesday, with pollution levels remaining in the ‘severe’ category for the second consecutive day at an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 418, as stubble-burning in neighbouring states contributed significantly to Delhi’s worsening air.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the 24-hour average AQI stood at 418 at 4 pm. An AQI in the ‘severe’ range poses serious health risks even to healthy individuals and can severely affect those with respiratory or cardiac conditions.
Data from the Decision Support System (DSS) showed that stubble-burning accounted for 22.4 per cent of Delhi’s PM2.5 concentration on Wednesday — the highest share from farm fires recorded so far this winter. The share of pollution transported from outside the city was 15.5 per cent.
Delhi recorded its first ‘severe’ air quality day of the season on Tuesday, when the AQI touched 428. The air quality, which had stayed ‘very poor’ for several days, deteriorated further due to stagnant weather conditions and local emissions.
The CPCB classifies an AQI between 0 and 50 as ‘good’, 51–100 ‘satisfactory’, 101–200 ‘moderate’, 201–300 ‘poor’, 301–400 ‘very poor’, and 401–500 ‘severe’. For Thursday, DSS projections estimate that stubble-burning will contribute around 10.1 per cent to Delhi’s PM2.5 levels, while transport-related emissions are likely to increase slightly to 19.3 per cent.
Satellite data showed 312 farm fires in Punjab, 72 in Haryana, and 322 in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. According to the Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS), the city’s air quality is expected to remain in the ‘very poor’ category from Thursday onwards.
On the weather front, temperatures continued to dip, with the minimum recorded at 10.4°C—3.1 degrees below normal—and the maximum at 27.7°C. The weather department has forecast shallow fog on Thursday morning.
