Air emergency: ‘Severe’ pollution in Delhi likely this week

On Sunday, the AQI was 366 — in the very poor range.

Delhi so far has seen slightly above normal temperatures, which has helped keep pollution under check. Calm winds and lower temperatures aid the accumulation of pollutants.

On Sunday, the minimum temperature was 16.8 degrees Celsius, 1.5 degrees above normal, while the maximum was 30.7 degrees Celsius, 0.2 degrees above normal.

While 18 out of 39 air quality monitoring stations showed AQI to be in the ‘severe’ (400+) range on Sunday morning, all these dipped to the ‘very poor’ mark by late evening.

Shallow fog is expected in the morning through the week.

According to experts, paddy stubble burning is also set to increase in Punjab as harvest is complete in most areas after delays because of heavy rains and floods, and discolouration of the grain. On Saturday, nearly 500 cases were reported from the state, the highest this season so far. Data for Sunday has not been updated yet.

Curbs on entry of commercial vehicles running BS III and BS IV engines also came into force on Saturday.

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