Page 17 - Air Quality

Severe air quality alarm in Delhi-NCR area due to surge in stubble burning

The smoky haze shrouding Delhi thickened on Thursday, obscuring the skyline and hiding the sun, due to a surge in farm fires and unfavourable weather conditions, prompting doctors to issue warnings about breathing issues being aggravated. Scientists have warned of a spike in pollution levels in Delhi-NCR over the next two weeks. This is concerning as the Air Quality Index (AQI) in many areas has already breached the 400-mark to enter the severe category. An official from the India Meteorological Department reported that visibility reduced to just 500 metres at the Safdarjung Observatory around 7 am, gradually improving to 800 metres as temperatures increased during the day. Cold temperatures create stable atmospheric conditions, known as temperature inversions, where a layer of warm air traps cooler air near the ground, allowing the accumulation of pollutants. At 3 pm, the city's AQI reached 378. The 24-hour average AQI was 364 on Wednesday, 359 on Tuesday, 347 on Monday, 325 on ..

Delhi's air quality continues to be 'very poor' with the AQI at 343

Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reported air quality until 4 PM on November 1. The air quality index for Delhi stood at 364 which falls under the "Very Poor" category

Will ban construction work in areas with severe air quality: Delhi govt

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday said the city government will ban construction work in areas recording an air quality index (AQI) above the 400 mark for five consecutive days. During a press conference, he said Delhi's AQI has remained around 350 for the past few days and meteorologists attribute this to a drop in temperatures and calm winds. "These conditions are expected to persist for the next few days, making the next fortnight crucial for Delhi," Rai said. Despite the implementation of preventive measures under Stage 2 of the Central government's air pollution control plan, pollution levels in the city continue to rise. Therefore, the Delhi government will halt construction work within a one-kilometer radius where the AQI exceeds the 400-mark for five consecutive days, Rai said. 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 ministe

Delhi's air quality in October worst since 2020 due to lack of rainfall

Delhi's air quality in October this year was the worst since 2020 with meteorologists attributing it to the lack of rainfall. The capital recorded an average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 210 this October, compared to 210 in October last year and 173 in October 2021, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data. Delhi saw just one rainy day (5.4 mm of precipitation) in October 2023, in contrast to six in October 2022 (129 mm) and seven in October 2021 (123 mm). The Centre's Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) said the average wind speed during October 2023 was relatively low and spells of absolutely "still" conditions were also observed during the month. According to CPCB data, the capital did not record even a single day with 'good' air quality, whereas there were two such days in 2022 and one in 2021. The CAQM, however, reported that Delhi registered an AQI of 172 from January 1 to October 31 this year, the second-best for the corresponding period in six years.

Blurry skyline: Businesses hold their breath in Mumbai's smog-choked skies

With project execution and commercial office operations unaffected, city hopes for its air troubles to blow over

Punjab records 1,030 farm fires in a day, air quality turns 'poor'

Few places in Punjab on Monday reported air quality indices in the 'poor' and 'very poor' categories as the state reported 1,030 farm fires with Sangrur district witnessing the maximum number of such incidents. Monday's farm fires took the total number of crop residue burning incidents in the state to 6,284 in the current paddy harvesting season, data released by the Ludhiana-based Punjab Remote Sensing Centre showed. Of the 1,030 stubble burning incidents reported on Monday, Sangrur recorded a maximum of 198 such cases, followed by 129 in Tarn Taran, 124 in Ferozepur and 80 in Mansa. On the same day in 2021 and 2022, the state had seen 1,373 and 1,761 farm fires respectively. Meanwhile, as paddy harvesting is underway in Punjab, many places in the state on Monday recorded 'moderate' to 'very poor' air quality. According to the Central Pollution Control Board data, Bathinda recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 379, followed by Ludhiana at 241, Amritsar 201, Jalandhar 183 and Pat

Delhi's air quality plunges to 'very poor' category with the AQI at 309

According to the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB's) daily bulletin, Delhi's AQI as of 4 PM on October 28 was 304. It was more than the 256 recorded on October 26

Stubble burning contribution to Delhi's pollution likely to reduce: Rai

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Saturday that the number of stubble burning incidents recorded in neighbouring states so far is fewer than last year, and the overall contribution of farm fires to the city's air pollution is expected to reduce. However, he cautioned that air pollution may increase in the coming days due to unfavourable meteorological conditions. Only around 2,500 stubble burning incidents have been recorded so far, compared to 5,000 such cases during the same period last year, he told reporters here. According to the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Punjab, which accounts for the maximum number of cases of stubble burning every year, reported 49,922 farm fires in 2022, compared to 71,304 the previous year and 83,002 in 2020. The agrarian state logged 50,738 incidents of stubble burning in 2019, 59,684 in 2018, 67,079 in 2017, and 1,02,379 in 2016. Haryana recorded 3,661 farm fires in 2022, down from 6,987 in 2021 and 4,202 in 2020. The neighbour

Delhi air quality remains 'poor' for third consecutive day with AQI at 261

As stubble burning continues in parts of Punjab and Haryana, air quality in the national capital has worsened in the past few days

Delhi's air continues to be 'poor' with AQI at 249, Hanumangarh's worst

Air pollution: Hanumangarh was followed by Rajasthan's Bhiwadi and Haryana's Bahadurgarh as the most polluted Indian cities

Delhi's air quality stays 'poor', anti-pollution drive to start today

CPCB's daily bulletin showed that Meghalaya's Byrnihat was the most polluted city in India, with an AQI of 302, followed by Hanumangarh (297) and Greater Noida (278)

Air quality in Mumbai will improve in two months' time, says minister

Maharashtra minister Deepak Kesarkar on Wednesday said with all the steps taken for air pollution mitigation, it will take upto two months for the air quality in Mumbai to improve. Speaking at a news conference at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters, Kesarkar, who is the guardian minister of Mumbai, said dust particles was the major cause of air pollution in the city. The BMC on Wednesday came out with air pollution mitigation guidelines for construction sites and other sources of air pollution. "Now this action has been started, and in the coming one or two months, you will see its results," Kesarkar said. The Maharashtra government has set up a committee to study the issue and its work has started, he said. The companies implementing big infrastructure projects in Mumbai have agreed to participate in the initiative taken for improving the air quality, Kesarkar said. "Providing clean air to the citizens of Mumbai is also the responsibility of the government

Explained: What is GRAP, and how does it combat air pollution in Delhi NCR

Here is a closer look at Delhi's Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), what it entails, and measures citizens can take to help improve air quality in the national capital

Haryana's air quality this year is the best since Covid-19 lockdown in 2020

Gurgaon's Air Quality Index (AQI) has fallen in the 'very poor' category for 39 days this year, higher than 83 days in 2021 and 80 days in 2022

Overall air quality improves in Delhi on Wednesday morning but still poor

Delhi air quality: Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Monday said that the second phase of Grap has been implemented in Delhi to reduce the effect of increased pollution

Meerut tops list of Indian cities with worst AQI; check the list here

Delhi-NCR was among the most polluted regions in the country with most cities falling in the 'poor' category

Delhi's air quality continues to be "very poor", Mumbai's slightly better

Delhi pollution: The overall air quality in the national capital deteriorated from the 'poor' category to the 'very poor' category on Sunday afternoon, with the AQI at 302

Air quality likely to turn 'very poor', Govt invokes Grap Stage 2 measures

Amid a likely increase in pollution levels, the Centre's air quality panel on Saturday directed authorities in the National Capital Region to increase parking fees to discourage private transport and enhance CNG or electric bus and metro services. The action comes as part of 'Stage II' of the central government's pollution control plan known as the 'Graded Response Action Plan' (GRAP), which is implemented in the Delhi-NCR to combat air pollution during the winter season. At a meeting to review the air quality situation in the Delhi-NCR, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), a statutory body responsible for proactively implementing GRAP, said forecasts by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) suggest Delhi's overall air quality is likely to dip and enter the 'very poor' category on October 23 and 24, owing to unfavourable meteorological and climatic conditions. Delhi's 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) sto

Deteriorating air quality in Delhi, violations of Grap: NGT issues notices

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued notices and sought action-taken reports from several authorities, including the Delhi chief secretary, Union environment ministry and MCD, in a matter regarding the deteriorating air quality in the national capital. The NGT issued the notices while hearing a matter where it had initiated suo motu (on its own) proceedings based on media reports on the deterioration in Delhi's Air Quality Index (AQI) and violations of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), under which stricter measures are taken to curb air pollution during winter. Noting the reports, a bench of Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member A Senthil Vel said despite action taken by the authorities, the problem of air pollution is aggravating in Delhi and the residents are facing various health problems due to it. "We deem it proper to implead the following authorities in the matter -- chief secretary, Delhi, member-secretary, Delhi Pollution Control Committee

Delhi's air quality continues to be in 'moderate' category with AQI of 117

Notably, the AQI has increased from 83 on Wednesday to 117 on Thursday