Delhi's air quality worsens, fog delays 170 flights
What's the story
Delhi's air quality index (AQI) worsened on Sunday morning, touching 298 at 8:00am, according to data provided by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). This is a jump from the 24-hour average of 267 recorded at 4:00pm on Saturday. The CPCB data shows that the AQI is now close to the upper end of the "poor" category.
Weather warning
IMD issues yellow alert for Delhi
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for Sunday, predicting moderate to dense fog in the early hours. However, visibility in Delhi remained largely unaffected, even as parts of north India experienced visibility drops below 100 meters. Despite these conditions, at least 170 flights were delayed at Delhi airport on Sunday morning due to weather-related disruptions across other airports.
Forecast
Delhi's air quality expected to remain 'very poor'
The Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) has predicted that Delhi's air quality will remain in the "very poor" category from Sunday. The AQEWS bulletin said, "The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the very poor category." The CPCB categorizes AQI levels as "moderate" (101-200), "poor" (201-300), and "very poor" (301-400).
Temperature drop
Cold northwesterly winds lower Delhi's minimum temperature
Cold northwesterly winds have also lowered the minimum temperature in Delhi to 7.4°C on Sunday, which is 0.5°C below normal. The IMD recorded a minimum temperature of 8.1°C on Saturday. The maximum temperature was recorded at 17.3°C on Saturday and is expected to remain between 17 and 19°C on Sunday as well.