
Air pollution in the national capital was recorded in the "severe" category on Wednesday morning for the second consecutive day.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) reading at 9 am stood at 414, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
The city witnessed the worst air quality this season on Tuesday, with the AQI plunging into the "severe" category at 423.
The Central government invoked stricter anti-pollution measures under Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in the wake of the deteriorating air quality.
According to the CPCB classification, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered "good", 51 to 100 "satisfactory", 101 to 200 "moderate", 201 to 300 "poor", 301 to 400 "very poor", and 401 to 500 "severe".
Since Diwali, the national capital's air quality has consistently remained in the "poor" or "very poor" category, occasionally slipping into the "severe" zone.
Meanwhile, temperatures in the city continued to dip since last week.
The minimum temperature was recorded at 10.4 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, 3.1 notches below the season's normal.
The maximum temperature is likely to settle around 27 degrees Celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department. The weather office has also forecasted shallow fog in the day.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
All are hoping for rain that may wash away the toxic cloud hanging overhead. But the weather office ended that hope today, saying rain is unlikely in the plains. There might be some over the Himalayan region, but none is expected in Delhi, where the pollution has reached severe levels.
According to a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) report, the average PM2.5 concentration during the week before Diwali stood at 236 micrograms per cubic metre, almost double the 120 ug/m3 recorded in 2025. It was also the highest pre-Diwali average in three years.
The transport sector is expected to be the largest contributor to pollution on Wednesday, while the impact of stubble burning is anticipated to increase on Thursday, potentially worsening air quality further over the next few days, according to Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology models.
Air pollution in Delhi-NCR has worsened during the onset of winter (from October to mid-November) this year. This has been revealed in a new analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment or CSE, an organisation that monitors environmental issues.
All 10 cities in the ranking fall under the 'Hazardous' category, with Bathinda recording the highest AQI, followed by Rewari and Faridkot.
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