Delhi’s air quality has been a cause of concern since 1985, when a petition was filed in the Supreme Court to secure the health of the people, improve public health
NEW DELHI: Delhi's air quality turned "good" today for the first time this year due to continuous rains that have washed away the pollutants in the air, authorities said.
The Air Quality Index of New Delhi was recorded at 43 which falls under the "good" category, Gufran Beig, a scientist at the Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research institute (SAFAR), said.
An AQI in the range of 0-50 is considered "Good", 51-100 "Satisfactory", 101-200 "Moderate", 201-300 "Poor", 301-400 "Very Poor" and 401-500 "Severe".
The PM10 level (presence of particles with diameter less than 10mm) was recorded as "good" at 39 in Delhi-NCR and 32 in Delhi.
The PM2.5 level (presence of particles with diameter less than 2.5 mm) was 39 in Delhi-NCR and 21 in Delhi today, according to the Central Pollution Control Board data.
Beig said the monsoon had led to a flow of clean moisture-laden winds into the city that was cleansing the air.
Delhiites breathed "good" quality air for the first time this year.
There was a dip in the air quality on June 13 due to dust storms in western India that pushed the pollution level to "severe plus", bringing to light that emergency-level pollution could be a "summer-time problem" too.
