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Gurudwara Bangla Sahib during a smoggy winter morning, in New Delhi
New Delhi: Even though Delhi's air quality remained in the 'very poor' range on Saturday, pollution levels dipped marginally with the average AQI settling at 305 -- a slight improvement driven by favourable wind direction and speed, and the winding down of stubble burning in neighbouring regions.
The air quality is expected to remain in the 'very poor' zone for the next few days. With wind speeds likely to remain on the higher side, the Air Quality Index (AQI) may not slip into the 'severe' category for at least the next two days, Mahesh Palawat, Vice President (Meteorology and Climate Change) at Skymet Weather, said.
Meanwhile, Delhi continued to inhale 'unfit' air, with the average AQI recorded in the 'very poor' category for the 16th consecutive day.
The capital's overall AQI settled at 305 on Saturday after logging 369 on Friday, 377 on Thursday, 327 on Wednesday, 352 on Tuesday, and 382 on Monday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
According to the CPCB, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51–100 'satisfactory', 101–200 'moderate', 201–300 'poor', 301–400 'very poor', and 401–500 'severe'.
The CPCB's Sameer app showed that none of the 38 active monitoring station in Delhi recorded AQI in the 'severe' range on Saturday, compared to eight stations which displayed 'severe' readings a day earlier.
The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi has forecast that AQI will remain in the 'very poor' zone over the coming week.
On Saturday, surface winds blew from the northwest at speeds up to 15 kmph, through the afternoon and evening.
As per CPCB data, out of 38 monitoring stations in the city, 15 recorded 'poor' air quality, one logged AQI in the 'moderate' category, while the rest remained in the 'very poor' range.
The Decision Support System of the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, estimated that vehicular emissions contributed 18.7 per cent to Delhi's pollutants on Saturday.
It is projected to be around 18.6 per cent on Sunday.