Delhi’s air quality improved slightly on Wednesday due to increase in windspeed and was recorded in the ‘very poor’ category. Several areas of the city, however, continued to battle severe levels of pollution, said authorities.
The Capital had been witnessing ‘severe’ category of air pollution since Monday, data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) showed.
The CPCB recorded an overall air quality index (AQI) of 384, which falls in the ‘very poor’ category. An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’ and 401 and 500 ‘severe’. The AQI on Monday was recorded at 412, 415 on Tuesday and 413 on Wednesday morning.
The Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting (SAFAR) said that overall air quality will improve slowly and steadily to ‘very poor’ level.
“The isolated drizzling was counterproductive as it could not wash away particulate pollutants but increased the air holding capacity by introducing more moisture. Other than the surface windspeed, rest all meteorological factors are likely to be unfavourable even on Thursday,” it said.
Winds pick up
“Windspeed is one of the major players in the winter air quality of Delhi due to its landlocked geography,” the SAFAR added.
The windspeed improved from 2.5 km per hour to 4 kmph kilometre per hour on Wednesday.
The air quality of neighbouring Ghaziabad, Faridabad and Noida was also recorded in the ‘very poor’ category, CPCB data showed. Ten areas in Delhi recorded ‘severe’ air quality and in 26 areas it was at ‘very poor’.
The overall PM2.5 level was recorded at 250 micrograms per cubic metre (ug/m3) and the PM10 level at 405 ug/m3. Safe limit for PM2.5 is 60 ug/m3 and 100ug/m3 for PM10.