Delhi’s air quality worsened to an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 187 on Sunday, its highest level in 83 days, even as temperatures stayed above normal.
The AQI remained in the ‘moderate’ category, while the city’s maximum temperature was recorded at 36.4 degrees Celsius, 2.2 notches above normal.
The minimum temperature stood at 24.1 degrees Celsius, 1.8 notches above normal.
The air quality had last reached a higher level on July 13, when the city recorded an AQI of 246.
According to the Sameer app, 16 monitoring stations in Delhi recorded air quality in the ‘poor’ category.
Mundka recorded the highest AQI at 273, followed by Narela at 257. As many as 26 stations saw AQIs in the ‘moderate’ category, while Burari was the only station where the air quality was in the ‘satisfactory’ category.
The Central Pollution Control Board classifies an AQI between 0 and 50 as ‘good’, 51 and 100 as ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 as ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 as ‘poor’, 301 and 400 as ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 as ‘severe’.
In Delhi, Ayanagar recorded the highest maximum temperature at 37 degrees Celsius, followed by 36.4 degrees at Safdarjung, 36.3 degrees at Lodi Road, 35.8 degrees at Ridge and 34.6 degrees at Palam. Safdarjung logged a minimum of 24.1 degrees Celsius, while Lodi Road recorded 23.2 degrees, Ayanagar 22.8 degrees, Palam 22.4 degrees and Ridge 21 degrees.
According to the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, 203 stubble-burning incidents were recorded across Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh between September 15 and October 3.
On October 3, Punjab recorded one such incident, while Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh reported 12 and 15, respectively. Delhi recorded only one stubble-burning incident during the period, on September 19, when it reported its first such case of the season, the data showed. Relative humidity was recorded at 51 per cent at 5.30 pm.
The IMD has forecast a clear sky in Delhi on Monday, with the maximum and minimum temperatures expected to hover around 36 and 24 degrees Celsius, respectively.
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