Delhi AQI turns 'very poor' again; light rain expected around Feb 16

After Delhi's air quality improved slightly over the last week, the national capital's air was back to the 'very poor' category again on Wednesday. The average Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi stood at 305 at 4 PM, up from the earlier 271 AQI at the same time on Tuesday.

Prior to Wednesday, the national capital recorded a 'very poor' air quality on February 4 with a 339 AQI. Since then, the AQI has fluctuated between poor and moderate with light rain bringing relief to the city.

Weather analysts have said that back-to-back western disturbances may influence the region around Feb 17 or 18. "A Western Disturbance on Feb 13 will mainly affect the hills. Another disturbance on the night of Feb 16 may bring scattered rain to parts of Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh due to an induced cyclonic circulation over western Rajasthan and a trough extending from Delhi to Gujarat, along with moisture inflow from the Arabian Sea. Light, passing showers are possible, but widespread or prolonged rain is unlikely," Mahesh Palawat of Skymet told TOI.


As per India Meteorological Department (IMD) expectations, the maximum and minimum temperatures on Thursday are said to remain around 25–27°C and 11–13°C, respectively.

As an anti-pollution measure, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has mandated uniform technical and operational standards for mechanised road sweeping across the National Capital Region (NCR). The commission said inconsistent and inadequate road sweeping aggravated pollution, and further cited the significant contribution of dust to PM10 and PM2.5 levels.

(With inputs from TOI)