Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Nov.5: The air quality in Delhi fell to the “severe” level a day after Diwali on Friday, engulfing the national capital in a dense layer of fog. At 8 a.m., Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) was 451 (severe).
According to news agency ANI, the air quality in Janpath was classified as “dangerous” early on Friday, with a particle matter (PM) 2.5 concentration of 655.07.
On Diwali, firecrackers were let off in various sites around Delhi, defying the government’s ban and coinciding with a spike in emissions from farm fires. According to PTI, the proportion of farm fires in Delhi’s pollution has grown to the highest level of the season, at 25%.
The air quality in the nearby cities of Faridabad (424), Ghaziabad (442), Gurgaon (423) and Noida (431) was likewise rated as’severe.’
An AQI of zero to 50 is regarded ‘good,’ 51 to 100 is considered’satisfactory,’ 101 to 200 is considered’moderate,’ 201 to 300 is considered ‘poor,’ 301 to 400 is considered’very poor,’ and 401 to 500 is considered’severe.’
According to PTI, the air quality deteriorated due to unfavourable meteorological circumstances, including as calm breezes, low temperatures, and low mixing height, as well as a deadly cocktail of emissions from firecrackers and stubble burning.
“Fog conditions intensified in Delhi-NCR on Friday morning, lowering visibility at the Indira Gandhi International Airport and the Safdarjung Airport to the range of 200 to 500 metres at 5:30 am. Visibility in parts of the city dropped to 200 metres,” PTI quoted RK Jenamani, senior scientist at India Meteorological Department (IMD), as saying.
SAFAR, an air quality forecasting organisation, predicted that PM2.5 concentrations will skyrocket on Friday, with the AQI reaching the 500 threshold. Only from the evening of November 7 will relief be expected, but the air quality index will fluctuate within the “very poor” range, according to the air quality forecast service.
On Tuesday, a day before Diwali, Delhi’s air quality fell into the “extremely poor” category for the first time this season, with an AQI of 303.
