Delhi's air quality remains severe; strong winds expected to clear stagnant air
Air quality: Severe
Delhi's air quality remained severe for the fourth consecutive day today, even as authorities expressed hope that the condition would improve with strong winds expected to clear the stagnant air.
The PM10 level (presence of particles with diameter less than 10 mm) was recorded at 754 in Delhi-NCR and 801 in Delhi, leading to hazy conditions.
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PTI
Slow killer
New Delhi's level of PM2.5, tiny particulate matter that can dangerously clog lungs, exceeded 170 Friday morning, more than six times higher than the World Health Organization considers safe.
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PTI
Dangerous levels
The PM2.5 level (presence of particles with diameter less than 2.5 mm) that deteriorated from 'very poor' to 'severe' showed improvement on Monday at 184 in Delhi region and 175 in Delhi NCR, said the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data. Yesterday, the PM2.5 level in Delhi-NCR was at 268 and Delhi at 277.
According to the CPCB, the air quality index (AQI), a measurement of the concentration of toxic particulate matter in air, at several places in Delhi remained over 500.
An AQI between 0-50 is considered good, 51-100 satisfactory, 101-200 moderate, 201-300 poor, 301-400 very poor and 401-500 severe.
As the national capital region struggles with a severe dust pollution, Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal had yesterday ordered stoppage of all civil construction activities across the city till Sunday as part of the emergency measures which also include intensifying mechanical road sweeping.
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Reuters
Strong winds to clear the air
The India Meteorological Department said that the strong winds are expected to continue over the region. "Strong dust raising winds of the order of 25-35 kmph likely to continue over Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi and west Uttar Pradesh during next 24 hours," the IMD said.
It also predicted thunderstorms at isolated places over the city in the coming days, bringing relief from the dusty air.
