Delhi records lowest temperature of season, air quality 'very poor'

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Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 13.4 degrees Celsius, the lowest this season so far, on Wednesday and it is likely to dip to 11 degrees Celsius in a week, according to the India Meteorological Department.

The maximum temperature settled at 29.6 degrees Celsius.

Strong winds lowered pollution levels marginally and the 24-hourly average air quality index stood at 372 at 4 pm. Stubble burning accounted for 27 per cent of the air pollution in the capital.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered good, 51 and 100 satisfactory, 101 and 200 moderate, 201 and 300 poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 and 500 severe.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences' forecast agency SAFAR forecast that the air quality will deteriorate over the next two days and improve on November 13.

Calm local surface winds may lead to stagnant conditions that weakens dispersion of pollutants, it said.

The air quality had slipped into the severe category on Tuesday and the 24-hourly average AQI stood at 404 at 4 pm.

The share of farm fires in Delhi's pollution rose to a three-year high of 48 per cent on Sunday.

Mahesh Palawat, Vice President (Meteorology and Climate Change), Skymet Weather said the share of stubble burning in Delhi-NCR's air pollution is expected to remain high for another week.

"No major improvement in air quality is likely in the next four to five days," he said.

Last year, the share of stubble burning in Delhi's pollution had peaked at 42 per cent on November 5. In 2019, crop residue burning accounted for 44 per cent of Delhi's PM2.5 pollution on November 1.