A grey haze engulfed Delhi on Sunday as the city’s air quality touched the season’s worst level, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) hitting 391 in the morning before dipping slightly by evening.
At 4 pm, the AQI stood at 370, deep in the “red zone”, data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) showed. The morning reading at 8 am was the highest of the season so far.
A thick blanket of smog covered the national capital as temperatures fell to 11.7°C, nearly two degrees below normal.
Most parts of the city reported “severe” air pollution, with Punjabi Bagh recording 425, followed by Bawana (410), Jahangirpuri (401), and Nehru Nagar and Wazirpur (400), according to the CPCB’s Sameer app.
Across the NCR, Noida registered an AQI of 354, Ghaziabad 345, and Greater Noida 340, all falling in the “very poor” category.
The CPCB categorises AQI levels between 301–400 as “very poor” and 401–500 as “severe.” On Sunday, PM2.5, the most harmful fine particulate matter, was identified as the main pollutant choking Delhi’s air.
According to the Decision Support System (DSS) for air quality forecasting, transport contributed the most to pollution levels at 20 percent, while stubble burning accounted for five percent.
Satellite data showed 238 farm fire incidents in Punjab, 42 in Haryana, and 158 in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday. The Air Quality Early Warning System predicted that Delhi’s air would remain “very poor” for the next few days.
Since Diwali, the city has seen no real respite, its air has stayed lodged in the “poor” or “very poor” bracket, occasionally slipping into “severe” territory.
Delhi also recorded a minimum temperature of 11.7°C and a maximum of 28.1°C, 1.4°C below normal. Saturday’s minimum of 11°C was the lowest this season.
The weather department has forecast shallow fog on Monday morning, with temperatures likely to hover between 12°C and 28°C.
Despite the alarming pollution levels, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) decided against imposing stricter Stage 3 restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), for now.
The CAQM’s sub-committee reviewed the air quality on Sunday evening after the city’s average AQI remained in the “very poor” range through the day.
“Delhi’s hourly average AQI stood at 391 at 10 am but improved to 370 by 4 pm and further to 365 at 5 pm,” the panel noted.
Forecasts by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) also indicated that the city’s air quality will remain “very poor” in the coming days.
Given the slight improvement and forecast trends, the panel decided to continue the ongoing measures under Stages 1 and 2.
Stage 3 restrictions, which include a ban on non-essential construction, a shift to hybrid learning for classes up to Grade V, and restrictions on BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel cars, have not been implemented.
