New Delhi's air quality has plummeted to alarming levels, with smog significantly reducing visibility and pushing the AQI above 450. Stubble burning, traffic, and industrial emissions are blamed.

On Monday morning, Anand Vihar reported an AQI of 334, Ashok Vihar at 312, Bawana at 322, Chandni Chowk at 244, Dwarka at 297, IGI Airport at 260, Jahangirpuri at 323, Mundka at 340, Narela at 311, Patparganj at 287,

Whatever the causes of the smog, by one ranking Delhi was not just the most polluted city in the world, but “nearly five times as bad as the second most polluted city, Dhaka,” in Bangladesh next door, as Shashi Tharoor, a leader of the opposition in Parliament and best-selling author, posted on X.

Unhealthy

There's finally some green in Delhi, with the Lodhi Road (IITM) monitoring station logging an AQI of 95, what the CPCB categorises as the ‘satisfactory’ level.

The AQI in Delhi remained in the severe category from Monday to Wednesday last week and thereafter witnessed slight improvement on Thursday and Friday. However, it deteriorated to the severe category on Saturday.

Delhi reported shallow fog on Monday morning, with the lowest visibility of 900m recorded at Safdarjung. The minimum temperature stood at 14°C.

Delhi woke up to smog and 'very poor' air quality on Monday morning, with AQI in several areas exceeding 300. While GRAP IV restrictions remain in effect, authorities are set to review them, considering stubble burning and local transport as major pollution contributors over the weekend.

Delhi experienced a slight improvement in air quality as it dipped to the 'poor' category with an AQI of 278 on Monday. However, several areas still reported 'very poor' air quality. Authorities have implemented Stage-IV of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to combat pollution levels,