Delhi’s air quality deteriorated to the ‘very poor’ category on Saturday morning, a day before Diwali, with the Central Pollution Control Board recording an overall Air Quality Index of 364 and 18 monitoring stations reporting ‘severe’ conditions.
The reading was recorded at 9am, according to CPCB data cited by Jagran. The city’s 24-hour average AQI had stood at 382 at 4pm on Friday, indicating that pollution levels remained elevated through the night and into Saturday morning.
The deterioration was accompanied by a dense layer of smog across several parts of the capital. Visibility was reduced in areas including the vicinity of Rashtrapati Bhavan, where the building appeared obscured at around 10am, according to the report. Slow wind movement and prevailing seasonal conditions were cited as factors allowing pollutants to remain concentrated close to the ground.
Delhi has 59 air-quality monitoring stations, of which 18 recorded readings in the ‘severe’ category on Saturday morning. Under CPCB’s 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’.
The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi forecast that the city’s AQI could reach the ‘severe’ category on Saturday. The severe band begins at 401, meaning the forecast pointed to a further deterioration from the morning’s overall reading of 364.
The conditions have direct implications for residents who spend time outdoors, particularly children, older people and those with respiratory illnesses. Health experts advised these groups to exercise caution when going outside during the morning hours. The report also said that residents were experiencing breathing difficulties as the pollution remained concentrated over the city.
The worsening air quality coincided with the onset of cooler conditions in the capital. The India Meteorological Department recorded a minimum temperature of 16.2 degrees Celsius at Safdarjung, Delhi’s representative weather station. The temperature was 1.9 degrees Celsius below normal and one degree lower than Friday’s minimum.
The combination of weak winds, cooler temperatures and pollutants trapped near the surface has made the morning period particularly difficult for residents. The IMD forecast mainly clear skies over the coming days, while the air-quality warning system continued to indicate the possibility of severe pollution. The latest readings place Delhi’s monitoring network at the centre of attention as the city enters the Diwali period, when authorities and residents are closely watching pollution levels.
