Delhi records below-normal minimum temperature as air quality slips to ‘very poor’

New Delhi: Delhi’s air quality worsened again on Monday, slipping back into the ‘very poor’ category with an overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of 301.

The deterioration comes a day after the capital briefly saw some relief, when Sunday’s AQI improved to 279 and fell in the ‘poor’ range after 24 straight days of ‘very poor’ or near-‘severe’ pollution levels.

According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board’s Sameer app, 24 of the city’s 38 monitoring stations reported ‘very poor’ air quality on Monday, while the remaining 14 logged readings in the ‘poor’ bracket.

The cold conditions also intensified as the minimum temperature dipped to 5.7°C — 4.6°C below normal for this time of year — the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. Relative humidity stood at 100 per cent at 8.30 am, and the maximum temperature is expected to hover around 24°C.

Under CPCB guidelines, an AQI of 0–50 is classified as ‘good’, 51-100 ‘satisfactory’, 101–200 ‘moderate’, 201-300 ‘poor’, 301-400 ‘very poor’ and 401-500 ‘severe’.

(with inputs from agencies)