New Delhi: Delhi’s air quality showed a marginal improvement on Saturday morning, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) settling at 190 at 8 am, moving into the moderate category from the poor levels recorded over the previous two days, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
The national capital had recorded an AQI of 223 on Friday and 226 on Thursday, with both readings falling in the poor category.
Despite the overall improvement, several monitoring stations across Delhi continued to report poor air quality. Jahangirpuri recorded an AQI of 276, while Alipur stood at 258, Punjabi Bagh at 251, Bawana at 246 and Rohini at 239.
Other areas in the poor category included NIH Narela at 244, North Campus of Delhi University at 229, IIT Delhi at 227, Chandni Chowk at 208, Patparganj at 201 and RK Puram at 250.
In contrast, Anand Vihar recorded an AQI of 175, IGI Airport Terminal 3 registered 174 and JNU reported 179, all falling in the moderate category. IGNOU Maidan Garhi recorded a comparatively lower AQI of 146.
Neighbouring cities also reported moderate air quality, with Greater Noida recording an AQI of 159 and Noida registering 189.
The improvement comes after the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) invoked Stage-I of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across Delhi-NCR on Wednesday, following a review of the regional pollution situation and the need for preventive measures.
The Delhi Traffic Police also held an inter-state coordination meeting to strengthen enforcement of GRAP measures. Discussions included checking pollution certificates, diverting non-compliant buses at Delhi’s borders, enforcing vehicle entry restrictions between November 1 and January 31, and controlling road dust and construction-related pollution.
Authorities were directed to implement the CAQM guidelines within the stipulated timelines and improve coordination to prevent further deterioration in air quality.
Under CPCB standards, an AQI between 101 and 200 is classified as moderate, while readings from 201 to 300 fall in the poor category. The scale further classifies AQI levels of 301-400 as very poor and 401-500 as severe.
