Delhi’s air turns hazardous as pollution inches closer to ‘severe’ category, AQI flares to 391

Delhi woke up to hazardous air on Sunday, with pollution levels edging dangerously close to the ‘severe’ category as the city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 391 at 6 am, according to the Central Pollution Control Board's SAMEER app.

The reading placed Delhi firmly in the ‘Very Poor’ bracket, amid visuals of thick smog engulfing large parts of the national capital.

A dense grey haze reduced visibility across several areas early in the morning.


Around Akshardham, pollution levels spiked sharply, with the AQI hitting 445--categorised as ‘Severe’. Similar conditions prevailed in Anand Vihar, one of Delhi’s chronic pollution hotspots, where the AQI again surged to 445. Near India Gate, air quality remained ‘Very Poor’, with an AQI reading of 378.

Data from CPCB monitoring stations showed that the pollution was widespread rather than localised. ITO recorded an AQI of 403, Wazirpur 433, Rohini 424 and Patparganj 424, indicating that large swathes of the city were breathing unhealthy air. Under CPCB standards, AQI values between 401 and 500 are classified as ‘Severe’, while 301–400 fall under ‘Very Poor’.

The deterioration follows a sharp decline in air quality over the past 24 hours. On December 27, several parts of Delhi slipped into the ‘severe’ zone, with AQI levels crossing the 400 mark at multiple locations, underlining the persistence of winter pollution driven by unfavourable weather conditions.

Cold temperatures and fog have further worsened the situation. Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 7.6 degrees Celsius at 7 am on Saturday. The weather department has forecast dense fog during the morning hours on December 28, with the maximum temperature expected to be around 22 degrees Celsius and the minimum dipping to about 7 degrees Celsius. Moderate fog is likely to continue from December 29 to December 31, with no official weather warnings issued so far.

Pollution levels also remained elevated across the National Capital Region. In Ghaziabad, Indirapuram recorded an AQI of 394, while Vasundhara stood at 429. Noida’s Sector 125 reported an AQI of 414 and Sector 1 touched 443. In Gurugram, Sector 51 recorded an AQI of 355, while Vikas Sadan stood at 304, reflecting poor air quality across NCR cities.