Thick layer of smog covers Delhi on Diwali, air quality plunges to 'very poor' category

Delhi air pollution: The AQI level at Anand Vihar was recorded at 419 and remained in the "severe" category and the air quality remained "very poor" in several areas like Alipur, Ashok Vihar, Aya Nagar, Bawana, Burari, Dwarka, IGI Airport (T3),

The national capital and and its neighbouring areas on Thursday woke up to a thick layer of smog on Dieali and the air quality index (AQI) plunged to "very poor" category despite various anti-pollution measures taken by the Delhi government. As per the udpates from the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), the AQI on Diwali was recorded at 328, which falls under the "very poor" category.

It should be noted that the AQI between 0 and 50 is considered good, 51 and 100 satisfactory, 101 and 200 moderate, 201 and 300 poor, 301 and 400 very poor, 401 and 450 severe, and above 450 severe-plus.

The AQI level at Anand Vihar was recorded at 419 and remained in the "severe" category and the air quality remained "very poor" in several areas like Alipur, Ashok Vihar, Aya Nagar, Bawana, Burari, Dwarka, IGI Airport (T3), Jahangirpuri, Mundka, Narela, Okhla, Patparganj, Punjabi Bagh, Rohini, RK Puram, Rohini, Vivek Vihar, Shadipur, Sonia Vihar, and Wazirpur.

A day ahead of Diwali, air pollution increased considerably in the national capital on Wednesday with as many as eight monitoring stations recording 'very poor' quality air.

Delhi recorded an overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of 278 at 9 am, up from 268 recorded a day earlier.

The city's overall AQI remained in the 'poor' category -- a marginal improvement seen from Tuesday due to favourable wind speed after several days of 'very poor' quality air.

On Monday, Delhi recorded an AQI of 304 and it was 359 on Sunday.

According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board, out of the 36 monitoring stations which reported data, eight -- Anand Vihar, Ashok Vihar, Aya Nagar, Bawana, Jahangirpuri, Mundka, Vivek Vihar and Wazirpur -- recorded "very poor" category AQI in the morning.

The humidity level stood at 83 per cent at 8 am. The city would see mainly clear skies during the day with the maximum temperature expected to hover around 36 degrees Celsius.