Air turns ‘severe’ again in 3 NCR cities, agencies put on high alert

NOIDA: Air quality deteriorated to the “severe” level in Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad on Thursday with all three cities recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) of above 400.
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While Ghaziabad recorded an AQI of 432, Greater Noida was at 417 and Noida was at 414. In Noida, the highest AQI was recorded in Sector 1 at 436.
According to UPPCB officials, the AQI has shot up primarily because of a drop in temperature and humidity.Officials said low wind speed and drop in temperature have led to lowering of pollutants bringing particulate matter closer to the ground.
The situation has worsened because of an overcast sky. While the condition is likely to remain the same on Friday, the air quality could improve a little on Saturday, when the temperature is likely to rise.
Delhi’s air quality deteriorated substantially on Thursday and entered the very poor category. The air quality index (AQI) touched 382, worse than Wednesday’s “poor” AQI of 296. At 7.6 degrees Celsius, the minimum temperature on Thursday also touched the lowest of this season.
Among the NCR towns, Gurugram(328) was the cleanest with a “very poor” AQI.
With foul air days predicted for the next few days, the CPCB-led GRAP task force has asked all implementing agencies to be on high alert and take stringent measures to control air polluting activities. “Enforcement activities may be intensified, particularly in hotspot and industrial areas. Public may minimise use of private vehicles,” the task force recommended.
“Slow surface winds having speed of 4 kmph are expected to continue till December 10. The wind direction is expected to shift to north-east from Friday. This may result in further deterioration in the air quality. The AQI may fall in the lower end of the severe category by Friday. From December 11, rain with thunderstorms may occur and result in improvement of air quality.”
According to SAFAR, “The air quality is forecast to deteriorate to the higher-end of the very poor category by tonight. Further deterioration is likely tomorrow, and the AQI may stay at the border of the very poor to the severe category until Saturday.”
On Thursday, Safdarjung observatory recorded the lowest minimum of the season at 7.6 degrees Celsius. The previous lowest (7.9 degrees Celsius) was on Wednesday.