Thick brown haze in Delhi, as pollution spikes
Delhi and neighbouring areas on Friday continued to remain under a thick blanket of haze as air quality in the region continued to deteriorate further, largely due to farm fires in neighbouring Haryana and Punjab.
The Delhi government has already banned use of firecrackers in view of the persistently high pollution and smog levels that experts believe put more people at risk from the coronavirus.
The national capital’s air quality index (AQI) stood at 397 — which falls in the “very poor” category— at 9 am.
Several areas in the national capital have recorded levels of PM 2.5 particulate -- the most dangerous for human health — above the 400-mark. The worst air quality (507) was recorded in Bawana in outer Delhi, while Wazirpur, at 272, was one of the least polluted, as per the readings.
On Thursday, the 24-hour average AQI was 450, the worst levels since November last year, with farm fires accounting for 42 per cent of its pollution, the maximum this season so far.
Experts said unfavourable meteorological conditions —calm winds and low temperatures — and smoke from farm fires in neighbouring states pushed the air quality index to the “severe” zone on Thursday, the first time since January.
The air quality in Noida in
Uttar Pradesh, at 610, was the worst among the neighbouring cities that border the national capital.
Neighbouring Gurgaon in Haryana was shrouded in a toxic haze and visibility dropped due to cooler temperatures and lower wind speeds that let pollutants hang in the air. Bursting of firecrackers in the satellite town near Delhi has been a major factor in the spike in pollution levels.
Ensure no smog in Delhi: Supreme Court to Centre
A commission formed to fight air pollution in the National Capital Region will start working from today, the centre told the Supreme Court after Chief Justice of India SA Bobde instructed them to ensure there’s “no smog in the city”.
“There are many commissions, brains working, but ensure there’s no smog in the city,” Chief Justice Bobde said.
The petitioner’s lawyer Vikas Singh said not a single member from the Health Ministry is in the committee even though air pollution is closely linked to health issues, apart from damaged to the environment.