The national capital struggled with thick smog on Monday morning, with the air quality remaining in the 'very poor' category. The pollution levels have not shown any improvement, and even the flight operations in the main airport have been disrupted by the thick fog in the capital.
Air quality still at critical levels throughout the entire City
The average Air Quality Index (AQI) was 366 at 7:05 AM, according to the Sameer app data. Many areas were recording air quality in the "severe" category.
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Narela recorded the maximum value of the AQI for the day so far with a reading of 418. The remaining areas of Anand Vihar, Bawana, Jahangirpuri, Mundka, Rohini, and Wazirpur recorded values between 401 and 408, thus falling under the severe category.
Among the 40 air monitoring stations in the city, the lowest AQI was recorded in Dilshad Garden, which was 301. Even the lowest AQI was ‘very poor’ in the given area.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), AQI from 0 to 50 is ‘good’, 51 to 100 is ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 is ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 is ‘poor’, 301 to 400 is ‘very poor’, and above 401 to 500 is ‘severe’.
Air travel disruptions continue at Delhi Airport
Dense fog meant low visibility, causing delays at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport in Delhi on Monday. More than 150 flights have been affected, according to a report by Hindustan Times.
The airport has released a passenger notice at 7 AM, “Low visibility procedures are in progress at Delhi airport. All flight operations continue as normal.” Additionally, passengers have also been advised to confirm with the airline for the latest updates about flight operations.
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A total of almost 100 flights were cancelled on Sunday because of poor conditions of visibility, while over 200 were delayed.
Weather forecast for the day
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has also predicted moderate fog on Monday. The maximum & minimum temperatures will hover around 21 degrees Celsius & 9 degrees Celsius, respectively.
The minimum temperature on Sunday was recorded to be 9.4 degrees Celsius. This is 1.3 degrees above the average temperature. The maximum temperature on the day was 18.1 degrees Celsius.
