Delhi AQI: Slight improvement in capital's smog with 'poor' to 'moderate' air quality, AQI recorded at 316

Delhi AQI: The air quality in Delhi-NCR showed a slight improvement on Monday morning, with the Air Qualit Index (AQI) recorded at 316 at 8 am, as per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Compared to the Sunday statistics when the capital's AQI stood at 366, the air quality in Delhi has improved slightly.

To curb smog and air pollution in the national capital, the government has deployed truck-mounted water sprinklers across Delhi.

List of AQI data across areas of Delhi:

• Lodhi Road - AQI deteriorated from 364 to 312 in the "very poor" category
• ITO - AQI deteriorated from 312 to 160 in the "moderate" category
• Akshardham - AQI recorded at 347
• AIIMS & Safdarjung Hospital - AQI recorded at 215, categorized as "very poor"
• Kartavya Path - AQI reported at 307 under "very poor" category

Cloud seeding in Delhi

Speaking on the recent cloud seeding trails in Delhi, Ministry of Earth Sciences Secretary M Ravichandran told PTI that it was purely an experiment, stressing that such tests are essential to assess their feasibility before making them operational.


The BJP-led Delhi government conducted cloud seeding trials in parts of the national capital to ease the city's air pollution crisis and dense smog blankets. The project, conducted in collaboration with IIT Kanpur, was highly critized by the Congress saying getting a slight improvement in a limited area for a day or two, as is now being claimed, is a "cruel joke".

Responding to a query on the cloud seeding trials, Ravichandran called the efforts as purely experimental and said such experiments tend to have either positive or negative outcomes.

"Everybody is trying different things -- universities are trying, some institutes are trying. Only through such experiments and trials will we gain information. That was purely an experiment," he told PTI.

"Experiments can have both types of outcomes -- failure or success -- and it does not mean that we should refrain from conducting them,” he added.



"It's pretty bad. I came from Agra by bus, and the closer I got to Delhi, the thicker the smog was. You could definitely tell the difference. The closer I got to Delhi, it kept getting worse, to the point where I could even barely see the sun anymore..." Shane, a foreign national visiting India told ANI.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Delhi is expected see a clear sky on Monday with smog during the early hours.