Delhi air still 'very poor'; pollution likely to improve from tomorrow

The Air Quality Index (AQI) of the national capital was 337 --'very poor'-- at 8 am, according to SAFAR

Delhi's air remained toxic on Thursday as schools, colleges remained closed in the national capital, and the ban on construction and demolition activities continues. 

The Air Quality Index (AQI) of the national capital was 337 --'very poor'-- at 8 am, according to the Ministry of Earth Sciences' air quality forecast agency SAFAR. Readings below 50 are considered safe, while anything above 300 is considered hazardous or 'severe'.

In a bulletin, SAFAR said, "AQI today indicates 'Very Poor' air quality. A shallow foggy condition is likely to keep AQI poor for the next two days. On 16th air quality is going to improve and from 17th onwards significant improvement is likely due to high wind speeds that keep AQI within 'poor' or 'lower end of very poor' category."

Delhi was this morning the world's topmost polluted city with an AQI of 272, said iQair, a website that tracks air pollution worldwide. The only other Indian city in the list of the world's top ten most polluted cities was Kolkata at the sixth spot with an AQI of 169.

Delhi's air quality in November was the worst in seven years, data showed. The air became worse after Diwali on November 4 as people violated a ban on bursting firecrackers while the pollution compounded due to an increase in stubble burning by farmers in areas adjoining the national capital.

Air pollution costs Indian businesses $95 billion or roughly 3 per cent of its GDP every year, according to U.K.-based non-profit Clean Air Fund and the Confederation of Indian Industry, Bloomberg reported.