The air quality index (AQI) in the national capital remained in the ‘severe’ category on Wednesday, with a thin layer of fog covering parts of the city and limiting visibility.
Meanwhile, the minimum temperature dropped to 5 degrees Celsius in the national capital on Wednesday. On Tuesday, the temperature was recorded at 7.4 degrees Celsius in Delhi at 2.30 am, as per the IMD.
As per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the AQI was measured as 442 at 7 am in the national capital on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Delhi’s AQI was recorded at 421 at 7 AM. AQI in several areas of the national capital was recorded as poor. 458 at ITO, 471 at Alipur, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium 443, DTU 432, IGI Airport (T3) 418, RK Puram 464, DU North Campus 436, at 7 am on Wednesday.
However, the AQI in some areas was better and was recorded in the ‘very poor’ category. Chandni Chowk’s AQI was recorded as 374, 348 at Lodhi Road, 344 at Dilshad Garden and 367 at NSIT Dwarka.
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An AQI between 0-50 is considered good, 51-100 is satisfactory, 101-200 is moderate, 201-300 is poor, 301-400 is very poor and 401-500 is severe. Amidst the cold, Air Force personnel were seen rehearsing for the 78th Republic Day parade at Kartavya Path.
Avinash who had come from Maharashtra to visit India Gate said while coming to Delhi he faced breathing issues due to the pollution.
“I have come on a Delhi ride with my bike. When I was going towards Gurugram I was having a little breathing issue,” he told ANI. Bhagat Singh, a resident of the city said that due to pollution number of people coming for morning walks to parks has decreased as people are facing difficulty breathing.
“Pollution has increased in the past two days and we are facing difficulty breathing. Due to pollution, the number of people coming for morning walks to parks has decreased,” Singh told ANI.
Anant Kumar who had come to visit India Gate told ANI, “Suddenly we are seeing how much pollution has increased, earlier there was some relief in the middle but then suddenly there is a problem. I feel some action should be taken.
“GRAP stage IV measures have been in effect in the entire NCR since December 16 after the deterioration in air quality.This decision came after Delhi’s AQI surpassed the 400 mark. On Monday night, the AQI was reported as 399 at 9 PM and crossed into the severe zone at 401 by 10 PM.