Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) at 11 am on Sunday was 279, in the “poor” category, worsening from 227 the previous day. Wind speed decreased from 20 km per hour on Sunday afternoon to 7 km per hour from Friday. According to the Central Pollution Control Board, wind speed less than 10 km per hour is unfavorable for the dispersion of pollutants.
The most polluted places in Delhi were Shadipur and Nehru Nagar, which had a “very poor” AQI of 360 and 347 respectively. While Lodhi Road station reported “moderate” air quality, 22 weather stations had “poor” and 13 stations had “very poor” air quality.
The India Meteorological Department has forecast very light rain or thunderstorm and moderate fog conditions from Monday to Wednesday. Fog is forecast for Thursday while the intensity of the fog will decrease.
The IMD has forecast mainly clear skies with moderate fog or haze in the morning and light fog or haze in the evening or night.
According to the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, the air quality will improve. The “poor” class By Tuesday, then Wednesday will worsen into the “very poor” category. It has predicted that the wind will remain in the “bad” category for the next seven days.
On the fourth day till Sunday, the minimum temperature was 7.4 degrees Celsius, which is about two degrees lower than normal. The day before was the coldest of the season, at 7.1 degrees Celsius, while the maximum was 25.4 degrees Celsius, one degree above normal.
After normal rise on Monday, the temperature will drop to 6 degrees Celsius in the coming days, IMD said.
According to the IMD, cold wave conditions will prevail in some parts of northwest India after Tuesday. There will be a slight chance of freezing fog and moderate fog Monday morning.
The IMD records a “cold day” or “severely cold day” when the maximum temperature is 4.5 degrees Celsius or more than normal. Similarly, a “cold wave” or “severe cold wave” is recorded when the minimum temperature is 4.5 degrees or below normal.
The air quality remained ‘moderate’ for three consecutive days till Saturday due to continuous strong winds and bright sunshine. So far it has not rained in December. Rain brings comfort and generally helps to clear the air. Except for 2022, a rainy day was observed in December in the last four years.