The Capital is in for a cold and polluted New Year’s Eve as cold wave conditions continue to persist with the Air Quality Index (AQI) reaching “severe” levels on Sunday.
The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting (SAFAR) has forecast “severe” air quality on New Year’s Eve with a sign of improvement to “very poor” on Tuesday provided that no additional local emissions are added during the year-end festivities.
“There is a sign of wind reversal with winds becoming calm even during the day. Deterioration in moisture-laden wind speed from the west may become fatal at this stage and any new trigger in terms of local emission particularly in the form of open fires, firecrackers and fossil fuel will fast deteriorate the air quality and keep it in “severe” category till Tuesday,” said SAFAR on Sunday. It added that dense to moderate fog is forecast that will further affect the air quality.
Silver lining
A fresh western disturbance is likely to bring some respite in the New Year with a change in wind pattern.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) stated that overall AQI of Delhi recorded 415 which lies in the “severe” category.
Neighbouring towns — Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Greater Noida, Noida and Gurugram — were also in the “severe” category with the overall AQI at 406, 441, 427, 426 and 475 respectively.
The CBCB data showed that 27 areas recorded “severe” pollution while eight areas witnessed “very poor” air quality. The overall PM2.5 level — fine particulate matter in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometre — was recorded at 318 and the PM10 level at 479 in Delhi, the CPCB said.
The MeT Department has forecast that cold wave conditions would prevail with the maximum and minimum temperatures between 23 degrees Celsius and 4 degrees Celsius respectively.
On Sunday, the minimum temperature was 3 degrees, which was four degrees below normal. It was, however, a bright sunny day with the maximum reaching 22.9 degrees, two degrees above normal. Gurugram was the coldest in the NCR with a minimum of 0.4 degrees. “Cold wave conditions likely to prevail on Monday with shallow to moderate fog in the morning and haze/ smoke thereafter. The sky is likely to turn partially cloudy on Tuesday with cold wave conditions likely at a few places,” the MeT said. Delhi has been dealing with its second-worst pollution spell after Diwali after the AQI clocked 450 last on December 23.
