After Record Levels Of Pollution On Diwali, Delhi Breathes Hazardous Air For The Second Day
The air quality in the national capital improved slightly on Saturday due to higher wind speed.
Still, the overall AQI of Delhi was 449 in the severe category at 8 am on Saturday, a small improvement from the 462 a day earlier.
The overall AQI was at 533 at 6 am and is predicted to improve as the day progresses.
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'.
Worst Diwali air since 2015
According to reports, the 462 AQI on Friday was the worst AQI the city has seen the day after Diwali since monitoring began in 2015. Delhi also recorded the sharpest deterioration in AQI since 2015, from the day before Diwali (AQI 314 ) to the day after.
The city's AQI slipped to the 'severe' category on Thursday night and continued its upward trend to reach 462 at noon on Friday.
The weather office has predicted strong surface winds that will help clear out pollutants in the city's air on Saturday.
Unfavourable weather conditions
Experts said the air quality degraded to severe in Delhi-NCR due to unfavourable weather conditions calm winds, low temperature and low mixing height and a poisonous cocktail of emissions from firecrackers, stubble burning and local sources.
Many residents, including young students were extremely vocal about the problem caused by pollution and the efforts to tackle it.
"Earlier, we did not get tired while cycling after a short time. But now with such levels of pollution, we get tired. It causes pain and a burning sensation in the lungs. It causes a lot of breathlessness. Visibility is also low because of pollution. Bursting firecrackers is a cause of it, they were used in spite of a ban. Pollution control is dependent on the conduct of people, how they follow instructions of the government," Gaurav, a student said.
"Yes, there was pollution and plenty of fog. We feel breathless while cycling. Visibility is low. Firecrackers were banned by the government but they were still being sold by some people. There is a lot of difference in levels of pollution after Diwali," Harsh, another student said.
Irresponsible behaviour of people
Environmentalists blamed the irresponsible behaviour of people for the crisis.
"The situation became worst due to complete violation of norms imposed by Court, Central and state government as people came out in huge number violating the rules and busted cracker in Delhi and NCR," Manu Singh an Environment expert said.
"I don't think people are actually understanding the severity of the situation especially when AQI level crosses the tolerant level. They are unaware of the health hazards that trigger due to the higher AQI level and went back to bursting firecrackers," Sunil Dahiya, another environmental expert said.
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