Winds improve Delhi air quality slightly

‘Stubble burning contributed to 14% of pollution on Tuesday’

NEW DELHI 22/10/2019 : Scene during slightly smoggy day at ITO bridge, in New Delhi on Tuesday Air quality of capital fluctuated between poor and very poor category depending upon the area. Photo Sandeep Saxena

The air quality in the Capital improved on Tuesday and stayed in the “poor” category, chiefly due to high surface winds.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is expected to slowly worsen, but will stay in the higher end of “poor” to “very poor” category for the next two days, according to government-run monitoring agency System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).

According to SAFAR, further high deterioration in AQI is only expected by the first week of November and repeated western disturbances are expected in the last week of October, which is likely to positively influence air quality.

The contribution of stubble burning by neighbouring States on Delhi’s air pollution is about 14% on Tuesday, said SAFAR.

The AQI on Tuesday was 207, lower than 249 on Monday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.

Meanwhile, AAP blamed the neighbouring States for “increasing” stubble burning, which is polluting the city’s air, and termed governments of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab as “incompetent”.

“There have been several news that due to stubble burning in neighbouring States, Delhi’s air is becoming poisonous,” AAP national spokesperson Raghav Chadha, said.

Quoting a media report, he said that the incidents of stubble burning has become five fold in the neighbouring States.