Delhi air quality: AQI drops to 234, improvement from 'very poor' category; relief temporary

NEW DELHI: Delhi’s air quality improved for the second consecutive day on Thursday, though pollution levels continued to remain a concern.

The city’s 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) stood at 234 at 4 pm, placing it in the ‘poor’ category, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The reading marked an improvement from an AQI of 271 recorded at the same time on Wednesday and a sharp recovery from the ‘severe’ level of 412 recorded on Tuesday.


Of the 40 functional air quality monitoring stations in the capital, 10 reported ‘moderate’ air quality with AQI levels below 200. These included Lodhi Road, IIT Delhi, Indira Gandhi International Airport and Aya Nagar. Meanwhile, 27 stations continued to record air quality in the ‘poor’ category.


Two stations — Jahangirpuri and Bawana — recorded ‘very poor’ air quality, with AQI levels crossing 300.

Despite the recent improvement, forecasts indicate that air quality is likely to deteriorate to the ‘very poor’ category in the coming days.

As per CPCB classification, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’ and 401 to 500 ‘severe’.

Data from the Decision Support System (DSS) for Air Quality Management showed that vehicular emissions were the largest contributor to Delhi’s pollution load on Wednesday, accounting for 18.5 per cent. Industries in Delhi and adjoining areas contributed 9.5 per cent, followed by construction activities at 2.5 per cent and waste burning at 1.6 per cent.

Among NCR districts, Jhajjar in Haryana emerged as the highest contributor to Delhi’s pollution at 17.6 per cent, followed by Rohtak at 5.9 per cent and Sonipat at 3.1 per cent.
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