Christmas relief! Delhi breathes easier as AQI hits 221; GRAP-IV curbs lifted

New Delhi: Delhi residents experienced a momentary break from hazardous smog on Thursday morning as the city's air quality index improved to the "poor" category with a reading of 220.

Data from the Central Pollution Control Board’s Sameer app indicated that 29 monitoring stations across Delhi registered air quality within the "poor" range. While most areas saw improvement, Anand Vihar remained an outlier with a "very poor" reading of 308, while other stations reported "moderate" levels. Under the national classification system, an index between 201 and 300 is deemed "poor," while levels exceeding 400 are classified as "severe."

The current trend follows a 24-hour average that also sat in the "poor" bracket on Wednesday, representing a notable recovery from Tuesday afternoon when the city grappled with a "severe" index of 412. According to the CPCB, the recent clearing of the air was largely driven by helpful meteorological factors, specifically surface winds blowing at speeds between 15 and 25 kilometres per hour.

Despite the current improvement, environmental officials cautioned that the respite is likely temporary and air quality is expected to decline again in the near future. On the weather front, the India Meteorological Department reported a minimum temperature of 6.5 degrees Celsius, which is one notch below the seasonal average, along with a relative humidity of 63 per cent. Forecasters anticipate a maximum temperature of 22 degrees Celsius with moderate conditions continuing through the day.

With inputs from PTI