A day after Diwali, pollution levels in Delhi and its neighbouring areas soared as people defied the ban on firecrackers plummeting the air quality as the capital grapples with toxic air for weeks.
The air quality dipped to “severe” at several places across the city as the festival of lights was shrouded in smog – a major contributor of this being stubble burning in neighbouring states.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) for PM 2.5 pollutant stood at 481 in Anand Vihar, 444 in IGI Airport area, 457 in ITO, and 414 in Lodhi Road area, all four in the ”severe” category, at 11 pm on Saturday, according to the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) data, news agency ANI reported.
Almost all areas in the city logged PM 2.5 levels above 400 with many regions nearing the alarming 500-mark.
The average AQI in Delhi at 8am this morning is 468. Anything above 60 is considered unhealthy.