Delhi-NCR under grip of dense fog; air becomes poisonous

Delhi, 31 January (HS):The national capital, Delhi, and the cities of border states are in the grip of a severe cold wave. There was dense fog in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurugram, and Faridabad this morning. Visibility remained negligible between 4.30 a.m. and 6 a.m. Apart from Dhaula Kuan, Duty Path, the Red Fort area of the capital, Delhi, and the Cyber City areas of Noida and Gurugram remained immersed in fog.

This year, in January 2024, the people of Delhi not only endured the harsh winter but also breathed in more polluted air than in the last few years. Not only did the number of days with air index in the ?very poor? category increase, but not a single day was found with air index in the ?moderate? and ?satisfactory? categories. The average air index for the month was also the highest recorded since January 2016.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi’s AQI remained above 400, i.e., in the “severe” category, for two days in January this year. 27 days were recorded between 300 and 400, i.e., “very poor,” while one day was recorded between 200 and 300, i.e., “poor.”. The air index did not go below 200 on any day. This year has been the second-most polluted January since the board started measuring the air index in May 2015.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi’s overall AQI stood at 357 on Tuesday. This level of air is classified as ?very poor.” It was 356 on Monday.And a special thing is that the average maximum temperature in the national capital, Delhi, this month until January 30 was 17.7 degrees Celsius, which is the lowest in 13 years. According to India Meteorological Department data, the average minimum temperature in the national capital during this period was recorded at 6.2 degrees Celsius, the second lowest in 13 years.

Fog blanketed parts of Delhi yesterday (Tuesday) morning, and the Safdarjung Observatory recorded a minimum temperature of 11.4 degrees Celsius. According to the India Meteorological Department, the relative humidity was recorded at 100 percent at 8.30 a.m. Due to fog, there has been a major impact on road, rail, and air traffic.