After the rain, Green Delhi breathes cleaner air

After the dust storm and long bout of monsoon downpour, Delhi’s air quality improved slightly, authorities said on Friday.

Last week, for the first time this year, the air quality index (AQI) improved to the ‘good’ category. But, dust storm on Thursday brought down the air quality index in the city to the ‘poor’ category, an official with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) said. The dust storm originated from Oman in the Arabian Peninsula.

However, the dust subsided on Friday and the air quality improved. The air quality index now is under ‘moderate’ category. The air quality index was recorded at 195, which falls under the ‘moderate’ category as per the CPCB data.

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The PM10 (particulate matter) levels rose to settle at 254 micrograms per cubic metre (g/m3) on Saturday. This is over two times the prescribed standard of 100 g/m3.  The PM2.5 was in the moderate category at 66 g/m3 as per the CPCB.

”The dominant pollutant, however, is PM10, which is less dangerous. It is likely to reduce further in the next three days,” the CPCB official added.

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’.

(With inputs from agencies)