According to the Central Pollution Control Board, the average PM2.5 level in Delhi was 212.5 micrograms per cubic metre on Saturday, up from 178.6 micrograms per cubic metre on Friday.

The air quality in Delhi slipped back to the ‘severe’ category on Saturday morning after having shown slight improvement earlier. At 11 am, the average air quality index (AQI) in the National Capital was 427.

A day before, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reported in its 4 pm bulletin that the air quality was in the ‘very poor’ category at 397. The air quality, however, continued to worsen and by 6 am on Saturday an average AQI of 422 was reported in the capital.

Barring, a few stations such as Sri Aurobindo Marg, Sonia Vihar, Pusa, IHBAS Dilshad Garden and Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, all other 26 air quality monitoring stations with functional data remain in the ‘severe’ zone.

The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) said the air quality is likely to be ‘very poor’ from Sunday to Tuesday. In the subsequent six days, this trend is expected to continue, it added.

The average particulate matter pollution also saw a gradual increase since Friday evening. According to CPCB, the average PM2.5 level was 212.5 micrograms per cubic metre at 11 am on Saturday. However, at the same time on Friday, it was 178.6 micrograms per cubic metre. It rose to 200 micrograms per cubic metre with calm winds by 8 pm on Friday.

Calm winds continue to prevail in Delhi as of Saturday noon, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD). An average wind speed below 10 kmph is unfavourable for the dispersal of pollutants, as per the CPCB. A dip in temperatures and fog intensification also keep the pollutants trapped in the atmosphere.

The minimum temperature on Saturday was near normal at 11.4 degrees Celsius. Shallow to moderate fog prevailed in the capital on Saturday morning. Safdarjung reported a minimum visibility of 300 metres as of 6.30 am, while the visibility was 800 metres at Palam. Dense fog conditions are on the forecast on Sunday. After which, till November 27, moderate fog conditions are expected to prevail.

Source: indianexpress