Two days after Diwali, air quality in Delhi falls to 'severe'; AQI at 430

Following the widespread violation of the firecracker ban across the National Capital Region (NCR), the air quality in Delhi and nearby cities worsened on Tuesday. On Monday morning, toxic haze had returned to Delhi, Noida, Gurugram and surrounding places following the Diwali celebration.

According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, the air quality index (AQI) in ITO was registered at 430 at 6 AM, and the AQI in Jahangirpuri was recorded at 428. At 9 AM, AQI.CN pegged the air quality index (AQI) in the national capital 417. The AQI in Punjabi Bagh was recorded at 341, whereas in R K Puram AQI was at 350.

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium registered an AQI of 910, Karol Bagh 779 , and Lajpat Nagar 959. The AQI at Wazirpur was recorded at 379, while Mundka showed a reading of 388.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe".

Mumbai and Kolkata joined New Delhi among the world's top 10 most polluted cities on Monday, after revellers burst firecrackers for Diwali. Mumbai came in sixth in the ranking with an AQI of 157, whereas Kolkata was seventh with an AQI of 154.

Between November 2 and November 9, Delhi witnessed its longest and most severe stretch of air pollution, with the AQI above 390 for a record eight consecutive days. For the six days after November 14, AQI is expected to remain in the "severe" to "very poor" category.

Delhi recorded an AQI of 312 on Diwali last year, 382 in 2021, 414 in 2020, 337 in 2019, 281 in 2018, 319 in 2017, and 431 in 2016, according to the CPCB data.