Smog blankets city pockets

NEW DELHI, November 4: Smog-like conditions prevailed in some pockets of the city especially around ITO, Rohini and Wazirpur. A haze enveloped these areas and Delhiites breathed with difficulty. According to Dilip Biswas, chairman, Central Pollution Control Board CPCB, this was a natural phenomenon aggravated by vehicular emission and thermal pollution. 8220;Because of the change in wind direction and lowering of temperature, the mixing height of the pollutants becomes lower and they do not disperse easily into the atmosphere,8221; he said.

Because of this inversion, the suspended particulate matter and fog settles down lowering the visibility considerably. The haze especially in the morning and evening could be because of the easterlies, the meteorological department said.

Talking about the concentration of the phenomenon only in a few pockets, Biswas said: 8220;The wind currents are different in different areas of the city, so even if the temperature is the same, it is possible for pockets to form,8221; he said.