Delhi's air quality continued to deteriorate on Saturday, remaining in the "poor" category for the fifth consecutive day, with nine monitoring stations falling in the red zone of the "very poor" category as pollution levels spiked ahead of Diwali.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the national capital recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 268 at 4 pm, placing it in the "poor" category.

Within the NCR region, Ghaziabad recorded a "very poor" AQI of 324, while Noida and Gurugram remained in the "poor" category with AQIs of 298 and 258, respectively.

Out of the 38 monitoring stations in the capital, nine reported air quality in the "very poor" category, with some locations inching towards the "severe” zone.

Anand Vihar recorded the highest AQI at 389, followed by Wazirpur (351), Bawana (309), Jahangirpuri (310), Okhla (303), Vivek Vihar (306), Dwarka (310), and Siri Fort (307), according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

According to the CPCB, an AQI between zero 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".

A similar air quality forecast has been issued for the coming days by the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi.

Transport emissions remained the largest contributor to Delhi's air pollution on Saturday, accounting for 15.6 per cent of total emissions, based on data from the Decision Support System.

On the weather front, the maximum temperature in Delhi was recorded at 33.5 degrees Celsius, 0.9 notch above normal, while the minimum temperature settled at 19.6 degrees Celsius, 1.2 notches above normal.

The IMD has forecast a clear sky for Sunday, with the maximum temperature likely to touch 33 degrees Celsius and the minimum around 19 degrees Celsius.

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