Delhi sees brief respite from pollution as AQI records 220

Delhi saw a brief respite from elevated pollution levels on Thursday morning, with the air quality index (AQI) recorded at 220 in the 'poor' category.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) Sameer app, 29 monitoring stations in the capital recorded air quality in the 'poor' category. Anand Vihar recorded AQI in the 'very poor' category at 308, while the remaining stations were in the 'moderate' range.

As per the CPCB classification, an AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51 to 100 'satisfactory', 101 to 200 'moderate', 201 to 300 'poor', 301 to 400 'very poor' and 401 to 500 'severe'.

The 24-hour average AQI in the capital stood in the 'poor' category on Wednesday as well. This marked a sharp improvement from Tuesday, when the AQI had deteriorated to 412 in the 'severe' category at 4 pm, the CPCB data showed.

However, the relief is expected to be short-lived, with air quality likely to worsen again in the coming days. Favourable meteorological conditions, particularly surface wind speeds of 15 to 25 kilometers per hour, helped improve air quality in the capital, the CPCB said.

On the weather front, Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 6.5 degrees Celsius, one notch below normal, and a relative humidity of 63 per cent, according to the India Meteorological Department. The expected maximum temperature is 22 degrees Celsius and a moderate is forecast.