Pollution: Indian capital’s overall air quality slips to 'very poor' category

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) in the Indian capital slipped to 368 in the 'very poor' category on Friday morning.   

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The PM 10 was recorded at 376 in the 'very poor' category while PM 2.5 was 224 in the 'very poor' category at 7:50 am in the morning. The AQI of 350 and 463 was recorded in Gurugram and Noida respectively in the "very poor" and "severe" categories.  

In a bulletin, SAFAR said, "Local surface winds are relatively low for the next three days that reduce the dispersion of pollutants leading to the deterioration of air quality but within the 'upper end of very poor' category."   

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On November 29, surface winds are likely to increase leading to improvement of air quality but still it may remain within the 'very poor' category, it said.   

"Local emissions and weather (mixing layer height and wind speed) are likely to be the dominant factors controlling air quality. Effective fire count is 219 and its per cent share in Delhi's PM2.5 is 6 per cent," it added.  

(With inputs from agencies)