Delhi Air 'Poor' With AQI At 242. IMD Says Rain Likely After Oct 15, Temp May Drop Next Week

Delhi's air quality remained in the 'poor' category on Friday with IMD predicting the same for the coming 2-3 days. The weatherman has also said that rain is likely in the region after Sunday.

Delhi AQI in 'Poor' category, to remain so for two-three days. ( Image Source :Getty Images )

The monsoon departure from Delhi-NCR and the entire north India will now be followed by the arrival of winter as the India Meteorological Department has predicted a sharp drop in temperature in and around the national capital in the coming week. What is of concern here is the air quality that usually dips as winter arrives. As of 11 am, according to System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR India), Delhi's overall air quality was in 'poor' category with an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 242. AQI was 190, in poorer category, earlier in the day.

According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the air quality is likely to be in the lower end of 'Poor' category from Oct 13 to Oct 14. It said that the air quality is likely to remain in 'Moderate' category on Oct 15 (Sunday). The update stated that AQI is likely to remain in 'Moderate to Poor' category for the next six days.

Delhi's overall Air Quality Index (AQI) is presently at 190 in the 'moderate' category, as per SAFAR-India.

Air Quality Index (AQI) presently at 313 near Delhi University in 'very poor' category, and 212 in Noida (UP) in 'poor' quality. pic.twitter.com/16fmLYvDZe

— ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2023

Notably, the Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Centre's air quality panel -- the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM)-- to inform the Court about the steps taken concerning the air pollution in and around the National Capital.

Speaking on Delhi weather, IMD Environment Monitoring & Research head Vijay Kumar Soni told ANI that there are chances of rain after October 15 which may improve the AQI in the region.

"Yesterday, the AQI was in 'poor' category. Today, the AQI is 237, which comes under the 'poor' category. This will remain in the same category till tomorrow. But there is a chance of rain after October 15, this may improve the AQI and it would be back in 'moderate' or 'satisfactory' category," he said.

#WATCH | Delhi: On Air Quality Index dipping to poor category, IMD Environment Monitoring & Research head Vijay Kumar Soni says, "Yesterday, the AQI was in 'poor' category. Today, the AQI is 237, which comes under the 'poor' category. This will remain in the same category till… pic.twitter.com/cBiTw1eIuh

— ANI (@ANI) October 13, 2023

According to ANI, the AQI near Delhi University stood at 313 in the 'very poor' category, and 212 in Noida (UP) which is also the poor quality zone. The air quality in Delhi's Anand Vihar was recorded as poor with an AQI of 257, whereas it was 347 in the Bawana area. The RK Puram area recorded an AQI of 214, and at Dwarka-Sector 8, it was at 219, while at Narela it was at 285, all in the poor category.

The IMD has predicted that temperature could drop rapidly across Dehi-NCR the next week, as per Times Now.

Teams Formed To Improve Delhi Air Quality At 13 Hotspots

Amid concerns about Delhi's worsening air quality, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday said the AAP government has formed interdepartmental teams to improve air quality at the 13 air pollution hotspots in the capital. These hotspots are Narela, Bawana, Mundka, Wazirpur, Rohini, R K Puram, Okhla, Jahangirpuri, Anand Vihar, Punjabi Bagh, Mayapuri, Dwarka.

These were identified based on the annual average concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5, as per PTI. 

#WATCH | Delhi: Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai says, "...Under the guidance of CM Arvind Kejriwal, the Delhi government is working on a war-footing against pollution. We are happy that this year there were more than 200 days of good air quality. In 2016, it was 109; last… pic.twitter.com/BZqnBXNiNo

— ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2023

"Interdepartmental teams have been established to address these issues. We will deploy 12 mobile anti-smog guns to control dust pollution in the area... Similarly, teams have been established to address pollution resulting from biomass burning and broken roads in Ashok Vihar," Rai was quoted as saying by PTI.