Delhi AQI Hits 379 as Punjabi Bagh Enters Severe Category at 458
Delhi's air quality continued to languish in the 'very poor' category on Wednesday, with Punjabi Bagh suffering the worst pollution as its Air Quality Index reached a 'severe' level of 458, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Across the capital as a whole, the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 379.
The dip in air quality marked a worsening from the previous day. On Tuesday, the city's AQI had already breached the 300-mark to settle at 332, placing Delhi firmly within the 'very poor' category before deteriorating further toward the severe threshold in areas like Punjabi Bagh on Wednesday.
Under the CPCB classification standards, an AQI reading between zero and 50 is classified as 'good', between 51 and 100 is 'satisfactory', and between 101 and 200 is rated 'moderate'. When the index climbs between 201 and 300, it is classified as 'poor', while readings between 301 and 400 fall into the 'very poor' bracket. An AQI between 401 and 500 represents the 'severe' category, posing hazardous conditions.
Alongside the toxic air, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) recorded minimum temperatures that hovered mostly above the seasonal averages across the city on Wednesday. Safdarjung, which serves as Delhi's primary weather station, recorded a minimum temperature of 16.1 degrees Celsius, standing 0.8 degrees Celsius above the season's average.
Readings from other monitoring stations across Delhi reflected varied temperature trends. Palam recorded a minimum temperature of 16.9 degrees Celsius, which was 0.7 degrees Celsius above normal. Lodhi Road recorded a minimum of 16.1 degrees Celsius, registering 3.1 degrees Celsius above normal levels, while Ayanagar logged 16.6 degrees Celsius, 0.4 degrees above seasonal expectations. Conversely, the Ridge station recorded a minimum temperature of 16.4 degrees Celsius, which was 0.7 degrees below normal.
The weather department also reported that dry conditions prevailed across Delhi, with no rainfall recorded at any of the five weather monitoring stations during the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 am on Wednesday.
