Delhi’s air quality remained in the ‘very poor’ category on Sunday, with the national capital recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 351 at 8 am, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.
Several monitoring stations across the city reported readings in the ‘severe’ category, with IIT Delhi recording the highest AQI at 426.
Six monitoring stations recorded AQI readings above 400, placing them in the ‘severe’ category. IIT Delhi topped the list at 426, followed by ITO at 415, NIH Narela at 411, NSIT Dwarka at 409, NSUT Jaffarpur at 407 and Commonwealth Sports Complex at 403.
Delhi University’s North Campus recorded an AQI of exactly 400, while Burari Crossing registered 397 and CRRI Mathura Road stood at 393. Delhi Technological University (DTU) recorded 391, followed by Punjabi Bagh at 385, Chandni Chowk at 384 and JNU at 382.
Among other locations, Vasundhara Enclave recorded an AQI of 380, followed by Mundka at 377, Talkatora Garden at 375, Vivek Vihar at 374, Chhawla at 372 and Sirifort at 369. Anand Vihar registered 364, while Bawana recorded 367.
PM2.5 and PM10 were the prominent pollutants contributing to poor air quality across monitoring stations in the capital.
Under the CPCB’s National Air Quality Index classification, readings between 0 and 50 are categorised as ‘good’, 51 and 100 as ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 as ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 as ‘poor’, 301 and 400 as ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 as ‘severe’.
Gurugram, Noida and Faridabad in ‘very poor’ category
Air quality remained poor across several neighbouring National Capital Region (NCR) cities, with Gurugram recording an AQI of 322 at 8 am. Noida followed at 313, while Faridabad registered 305, placing all three cities in the ‘very poor’ category.
Other NCR cities also reported elevated pollution levels. Bhiwadi recorded an AQI of 325, while Bahadurgarh stood at 323 and Ballabgarh at 320. Ghaziabad registered 292, followed by Greater Noida at 278.
Centre calls for coordinated action to tackle NCR pollution
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Saturday called for coordinated action by Delhi-NCR states to tackle air pollution, saying it does not recognise state boundaries. He stressed the need for real-time monitoring through integrated command and control centres (ICCCs) and direct accountability of field officers for violations.
Yadav chaired a meeting on Saturday to assess measures undertaken in Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to mitigate air pollution in Delhi-NCR.
During the meeting, state governments were directed to nominate secretary-level officials for seven cities in Haryana, four cities in Uttar Pradesh and four cities in Rajasthan to implement pollution control measures through field visits and submit weekly reports to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM).
