Delhi air still 'very poor'; Wazirpur, Bawana record 'severe' AQI

New Delhi, Nov 17 (PTI) Delhi’s air quality improved marginally on Monday with the AQI recorded at 351, still in the ‘very poor’ category, while Wazirpur and Bawana areas remained in the ‘severe’ zone

with AQI above 400.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) remained in the ‘very poor’ category on Monday, with the 24-hour average settling at 351, a slight improvement from 377 recorded on Sunday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Data on the CPCB’s Sameer app showed that only two monitoring stations — Wazirpur and Bawana — showed AQI readings above 400, in the ‘severe’ category, with Wazirpur at 405 and Bawana at 407.

In contrast, 11 out of the 39 stations in the city recorded ‘severe’ AQI on Sunday .

As per CPCB standards, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51–100 ‘satisfactory’, 101–200 ‘moderate’, 201–300 ‘poor’, 301–400 ‘very poor’, and 401–500 ‘severe’.

Meanwhile, the Decision Support System (DSS), a mechanism used by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, for air quality analysis and forecast, showed that vehicular emissions contributed around 18 per cent to the city’s pollution on Monday, while stubble burning accounted for 8.2 per cent.

For Tuesday, these parameters are projected to comprise 17.9 per cent and 8.3 per cent, respectively, of Delhi’s pollution.

Satellite imaging detected 95 farm fire incidents in Punjab, 47 in Haryana, and 461 in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday.

According to the Air Quality Early Warning System of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the city’s AQI is likely to remain in the ‘very poor’ range for the next six days. PTI NSM ARB ARB