Delhi air quality remains ‘very poor’, thick layer of smog engulfs city

A dense layer of smog engulfed Delhi on Sunday morning as several parts of the capital city grappled with severe air pollution even 10 days after Diwali.
Air quality in Delhi was adjudged as ‘very poor’ with an AQI of 335 at around 8 am on Sunday, a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.
Visuals showed a thick blanket of smog covered areas near the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in south Delhi, with the air quality being recorded in the ‘very poor’ category.

Also, a layer of smog engulfed the Red Fort and surrounding areas as the AQI was recorded at 207, categorised as ‘poor’, around the iconic monument, the CPCB said.

According to data issued by the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR-India), several pockets in the city also witnessed very poor air quality on Sunday morning.
Some of the areas worst-affected by air pollution included, New Moti Bagh (AQI 394), Bawana (AQI 383), RK Puram (AQI 368), Wazirpur (AQI 366), Mundka (AQI 358), Kartavya Path (357), and Anand Vihar (AQI 351).
Also, Dwarka Sector-8 and Najafgarh recorded an AQI of 341, Okhla Phase-2 had AQI of 339, Mathura Road had 323, and Lodhi Road had 319, as per SAFAR-India data.
In many parts of the city, buildings, monuments, offices, flyovers, roads, and bridges were hardly visible as they were covered by a thick layer of smog.
In addition to air pollution, drone videos showed toxic foam floating on the Yamuna River in the Kalindi Kunj area, apart from an air quality which was recorded in the ‘very poor’ category in the vicinity.

Meanwhile, doctors have urged citizens to stay indoors as much as possible and take other precautions, warning that even people with no history of respiratory diseases may face breathing issues.
“Apart from the regular patients, those who haven’t had any respiratory issues in the past are having symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, coughing and increasing difficulties in breathing,” Apollo Hospital’s Dr Nikhil Modi was quoted as saying by ANI.
The doctor further advised that the government should order the closure of schools for some days as children continue to be vulnerable.
An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered to be ‘poor’, while an AQI from 301 to 400 is rated as ‘very poor’. An AQI of 401 to 500 falls under the ‘severe’ category, and it is termed as ‘Severe+’, if numbers are anywhere between 501 and 600.