Delhi recorded ‘poor’ air quality on Friday, with no improvement expected over the next nine days. The Capital’s Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 230, the data showed.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board’s Sameer app, three of the 56 monitoring stations in the city recorded air quality in the ‘very poor’ category, with Pusa recording the highest AQI at 324. While 36 stations recorded ‘poor’ air quality, the AQI readings from the remaining 17 stations were in the ‘moderate’ category. Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa directed officials on Friday to identify pollution hotspots in the Capital’s southwest and west using air quality data and ground inspections, urging them to ensure time-bound action against road dust, traffic congestion, encroachments and open waste burning.
Delhi’s air quality is likely to remain in the ‘poor’ category from October 23 to October 26. It is likely to remain unchanged over the subsequent six days, according to the Air Quality Early Warning System. A ventilation index below 6,000 square metres per second, coupled with an average wind speed of less than 10 km/ph, is unfavourable for the dispersion of pollutants, the forecast said.
According to the Decision Support System for Air Quality Management in Delhi by IITM Pune, the transport sector contributed 20.3 per cent to the city’s air pollution, followed by residential sources at 5.2 per cent, industries at 4.2 per cent, construction at 2.6 per cent, energy at 2 per cent, waste burning at 1.8 per cent, road dust at 1.4 per cent and other sectors at 1.3 per cent.
Among NCR districts, Gurugram contributed the most to Delhi’s pollution at 8.8 per cent, followed by Jhajjar at 6.1 per cent and Gautam Buddha Nagar at 4.7 per cent.
Stubble burning accounted for 5.1 per cent of the pollution, while other sources contributed 9.5 per cent, according to the Decision Support System for Air Quality Management. The maximum temperature at Safdarjung, Delhi’s base weather station, was 32.2 degrees Celsius, and the minimum was 19 degrees Celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Reviewing pollution control measures at the District Magistrate’s office, Sirsa asked the concerned departments to prepare hotspot-specific action plans, clearly identifying the agencies responsible and deadlines for corrective measures. MLAs, district magistrates, police officials and senior officers from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Public Works Department, Metro, Railways, Traffic Police and other departments attended the meeting.
The minister directed officials to use data from Air Quality Index (AQI) monitoring stations to identify local pollution sources, with particular focus on road dust, heavy vehicular movement, construction and demolition activities, unauthorised parking and waste burning.
He also called for focused monitoring of PM10 and PM2.5 levels at vulnerable locations and prompt corrective action wherever elevated particulate matter levels are recorded. He also directed agencies to remove illegal encroachments, repair potholes, treat exposed soil along roadsides and ensure regular water sprinkling at dust-prone locations.
Future road projects should incorporate end-to-end carpeting or paving of roads and roadside areas wherever technically feasible, and in accordance with applicable specifications, he said.