With worsening weather conditions across the national capital region, a thin layer of fog settled over India Gate and Kartavya Path around 7:40 a.m. on Wednesday as well. Amid the concerning environment, the visibility across the NCR remained low, and the Air Quality Index (AQI) hovered around 350, marking very poor conditions.
As reported by news agency IANS, Delhi during the early hours of Wednesday was covered with a blanket of smog covering the foot overbridge at ITO, with the AQI once again close to 350, underscoring hazardous morning conditions for commuters in central Delhi.
According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi’s overall AQI stood at 337 on Wednesday, which falls under ‘very poor’ quality, showing only a marginal improvement from Tuesday.
Of the 39 monitoring stations across the national capital, 34 recorded ‘very poor’ air quality, while just five stations reported pollution levels in the ‘poor’ category.
Several high-intensity pollution hotspots continued to choke under toxic air early in the day. At 7 a.m. Rohini recorded an AQI of 376, while other severely affected areas included Delhi Technological University (367), Anand Vihar (364), Bawana (382), Ashok Vihar (364), Burari (347), Alipur (344), ITO (360) and Dwarka (361), all firmly in the very poor range.
News agency IANS further said that, in the wider NCR region, Noida also battled persistently polluted air. Major stations reported very poor air quality, including Sector 1 (355), Sector 62 (304), Sector 116 (372) and Sector 125 (399), the last edging close to the ‘severe’ category.
The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi has forecast that pollution is expected to remain in the very poor range from November 26 to 28, with conditions likely fluctuating between severe and very poor over the following six days, as reported by news agency IANS.
Furthermore, the historical CPCB data also showed that Delhi’s average AQI remained consistently hazardous over the past week: 391 (Sunday), 370 (Saturday), 374 (Friday), 391 (Thursday), 392 (Wednesday), 374 (Tuesday) and 351 (Monday).
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has further predicted moderate fog on Wednesday, with temperatures likely to hover around 24 degrees Celsius (maximum) and 9 degrees Celsius (minimum).
(With inputs from IANS)