Delhi’s Air Quality Remains Critical; Several Areas In ‘Severe’ Category

On Wednesday, the national capital’s air quality remained a cause for concern, with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reporting several areas in the ‘severe’ category.

The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) for Delhi at 7 AM was 301, placing it in the ‘very poor’ range.

While some areas showed marginal improvement, others faced severe pollution levels:

Severe AQI Levels: Ashok Vihar (316), Anand Vihar (311), ITO (316), Wazirpur (331), Vivek Vihar (318), and Shadipur (375).

Very Poor AQI Levels: Lodhi Road (254), IGI Airport Terminal 3 (298), Okhla Phase 1 (298), DTU (250), and Pusa (281).

Visibility remained low, with regions like India Gate shrouded in smog, obscuring high-rise buildings from view.

Understanding the Air Quality Index Scale

The CPCB categorizes AQI levels as follows:

• Good (0-50)
• Satisfactory (51-100)
• Moderate (101-200)
• Poor (201-300)
• Very Poor (301-400)
• Severe (401-450)

Voices From The Ground

As per ANI, Nidhi Gupta, a Delhi resident, remarked that pollution is a recurring issue in the city.

She stated, “In Delhi, pollution is not happening for the first time. It happens every year. It happens every month, every 20 days. When the weather changes and the weather settles in, then pollution does happen. And the people of Delhi who have medical issues, have a problem, but the rest of the people have only been blown out of proportion. We live in Delhi. I am running for six, or seven years now with a very famous running group in Delhi. Our coaches take all the precautions in this weather. But because of that, we sit at home and stop doing anything else. We stop our morning activities and sit at home. And then suddenly we leave home after 15 days. So that pollution and that weather will affect us more, instead, we should keep doing little activities. You drink water, keep your body hydrated, eat well, then pollution doesn’t affect anyone. No one has died of this pollution to date.”

Another resident highlighted the need to reduce vehicular traffic. He suggested continuing online classes for children to minimize exposure.

“I would say that the online classes are going well. And they should continue. And for the elderly people, the weather is not good, it is polluted. So try to stay in areas where there are more trees and walking is needed. The stubble burning should also be stopped, like in thermal plants, blocks are used instead of coal for burning. The Haryana government has given subsidies to it our government should also bring provisions in such a way that people will stop burning stubble burning,” he noted.

Delhi-NCR Smog Forces Hybrid Learning As AQI Reaches ‘Severe’ Levels

Thick smog blanketed the India Gate area, pushing AQI levels into the severe category. The haze obscured high-rise buildings, drastically reducing visibility.

Earlier on Monday, the Delhi Government’s Directorate of Education instructed all schools in the capital to comply with CAQM’s directive.

The CAQM order asserted, “State governments in the NCR shall ensure that all classes up to 12th Standard are conducted in a ‘hybrid” mode, i.e., both in “physical” and also in “online” modes, wherever online mode is feasible in the territorial jurisdiction of the NCT of Delhi and the districts of Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, and Gautam Buddh Nagar in the NCR.”

The Delhi Government’s Directorate of Education has directed all schools, including those under NDMC, MCD, and the Delhi Cantonment Board, to switch to hybrid learning for all classes.

This measure, in line with the CAQM order, takes effect immediately and will remain in place until further notice.