Construction ban in Delhi may be eased as air quality improves

While schools in Delhi were allowed to reopen on Saturday, the improvement in the AQI means curbs on construction could also be eased. “In view of the significant improvement in air quality in NCR over the last three days, CAQM is likely to further liberalise restrictions in construction sector. A decision is likely as early as tomorrow,” the official spokesperson of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) said Sunday.

Delhi’s minimum temperature, meanwhile, recorded early morning, dipped to 4.6 degrees Celsius on Sunday, the lowest for the season so far. The maximum temperature, at 19.2 degrees Celsius, was also three degrees below normal.

Safdarjung, which is the official weather observatory for Delhi, was warmer than Lodhi Road where the minimum temperature was recorded at 3.6 degrees Celsius.

According to the IMD’s forecast, cold day conditions are expected to prevail on Monday as well, when the minimum temperature is expected to be 4 degrees Celsius and the maximum 19 degrees Celsius.

A ‘cold day’ is recorded when the minimum temperature at a station in the plains is less than or equal to 10 degrees Celsius, and the maximum temperature at the station is 4.5 to 6.4 degrees less than the normal.