Delhi air quality remains 'very poor'; no possibility of improvement today

The air quality of Delhi remained in the "very poor" category on Friday as authorities detected stubble burning in Uttar Pradesh for the first time this season after Punjab and Haryana that may have further added to the pollution woes of the national capital.

The overall Air Quality Index of Delhi was recorded at 370, which falls in the "very poor" category, according to data by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The highest fire count was observed from the north-west region of India, which comprises Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and parts of UP, according to the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), an institute under the Earth Sciences Ministry.

The IITM said there was no possibility of improvement in the air quality over the next two days.

"Contribution from biomass fire is likely to be marginal on Friday and further for the next two days. Because of poor dispersion and stagnant meteorological conditions, no significant improvement is likely for the next two days," it said.

State Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot on Friday launched a trial run of an e-bus and said the Delhi government had plans to float tenders for 1,000 electric buses by December so that the zero-emission vehicles are rolled out in the next five to six months.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation said around 1,582 challans were issued for violations in the zones under it. Deputy commissioners of 14 police districts in the national capital were directed to ensure no temporary licences are issued for sale of firecrackers till the PESO-approved crackers were available in the market.

Air quality severely deteriorating

# Authorities warned that the air quality would severely deteriorate from next week.

# A citizen's group wrote to the Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA), suggesting additional steps that could be taken to curb pollution, which included putting in public domain emission levels from all industries in Delhi-NCR and urging employers to encourage office-goers to work from home till November 10.

# Around 1,582 challans were issued for violations in the zones under the South Delhi Municipal Corporation on Friday.

# The PM2.5 level was recorded at 210. Fine particulates can be a matter of more serious health concern than PM10 (particles in the air with a diameter of less than 10 micrometres).

# According to the System of Air Quality Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the PM10 level in Delhi stood at 334.

# Wazirpur, Sonia Vihar and Ashok Vihar recorded "severe" quality air, while 28 other areas recorded "very poor" air quality, according to the CPCB data.

# Faridabad recorded an AQI of 406, which falls in the "severe" category, while Ghaziabad, Gurgaon, Noida and Greater Noida recorded "very poor" air quality.

# Pollution control authorities said the AQI of Delhi would remain in the upper range of the "very poor" category till November 5.

(With PTI inputs)