Delhi Air Quality Improves to 'Poor' Category from 'Very Poor' as AQI Drops to 294

The relative humidity in Delhi reached 74 percent by early evening as air quality showed slight improvement.

New Delhi:

Delhi experienced a marginal improvement in air quality on Tuesday, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) decreasing to 294 by 4 pm, shifting from the 'very poor' to 'poor' category according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Earlier that day, the morning readings had placed Delhi's AQI at 305, within the 'very poor' range, with a visible haze enveloping the city.

Despite the overall improvement, 16 of the capital's 38 monitoring stations continued to record 'very poor' air quality levels in the evening, down from 27 stations in the morning.

Siri Fort remained Delhi's most polluted location, registering an AQI of 347, with Wazirpur following closely at 332. Morning readings for these locations were even higher, with Siri Fort at 351 and Wazirpur at 342, as reported by the CPCB's Sameer application.

According to the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi, the city's air quality will likely remain in the 'poor' category through October 31, with forecasts for the following six days indicating conditions fluctuating between 'poor' and 'very poor' levels.

For reference, AQI values are categorized as follows: 0-50 is 'good', 51-100 'satisfactory', 101-200 'moderate', 201-300 'poor', 301-400 'very poor', and 401-500 'severe'.

Temperature readings showed Delhi recording a minimum of 20 degrees Celsius, which is 3.9 degrees above normal, while the maximum temperature reached 26.4 degrees Celsius, 4.6 degrees below normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The relative humidity stood at 74 percent at 5:30 pm.

For Wednesday, the IMD has predicted shallow fog conditions, with temperatures expected to range between 18 and 30 degrees Celsius.