GRAP 4 curbs back as air quality plummets, light rain likely today
The average daily air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 386 (very poor) at 4 pm against Tuesday's AQI of 275 (poor).
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A thick blanket of fog enveloped parts of Delhi and NCR in the early hours on Friday, with visibility dropping to zero. (Praveen Khanna)The poor air quality in the Capital on Wednesday brought back strict restrictions under the fourth stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which includes hybrid classes for all students, except those in classes 10 and 12.
It also puts restrictions on the entry of trucks in Delhi as well as BS III petrol and BS IV diesel vehicles, alongside a ban on all construction activity (except for linear road development projects) and staggered timings for public offices and municipal offices.
The average daily air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 386 (very poor) at 4 pm against Tuesday’s AQI of 275 (poor).
The air is set to turn severely polluted, breaching the 400 mark, necessitating the imposition of the restrictions. The AQI took a turn for the worse because of low ventilation index, due to calm winds and low temperatures.
Meanwhile, a thick blanket of fog enveloped the city on Wednesday morning, with hundreds of flights as well as train operations being affected through the day. In the evening, the overcast skies led to light rain in several parts of Delhi and NCR, including at Karawal Nagar, Dilshad Garden, Seemapuri, Seelampur, Shahadra, Vivek Vihar, Preet Vihar and Akshardham.
This was the second consecutive day of dense fog in north India. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for moderate to shallow fog on Thursday. Light rain is also expected.
Thursday and Friday have been declared off days for classes 1 to 8 in schools in Noida. In Delhi, the government has announced hybrid classes for all except students in classes 10 and 12.
The visibility was around 100 m at 5.30 am on Wednesday, only to deteriorate to zero as the day progressed, primarily because of high humidity and low wind speed. An increase in temperature and slight uptick in wind speed during the day finally resulted in a let-up. The maximum temperature was recorded at 18.1 degrees Celsius, two degrees below normal. The minimum was 6 degrees Celsius, a degree below normal.
As per the IMD forecast, a warmer than usual morning is expected on Thursday, with the minimum temperature expected to be 10 degrees Celsius. The maximum will, however, be below normal, at 17 degrees Celsius.
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