The air quality in Delhi was still in the very poor category on Wednesday, the third day in a row, and it would seem to emphasize the persistent issues of air pollution in the national capital. The city reported an air quality index (AQI) of 333 per the 24-hour rolling average at 10 am, Wednesday; however slightly lower than the 4 pm reading of 351 on Tuesday, the highest reported in the season thus far. There is no record of the air quality falling into the very poor category on the Diwali day though this was the first time that the festive period experienced the fall in the air quality.
It has been slightly above normal with the lowest temperature of 21.8 degrees C and the highest of 32.9 degrees C the day before today. The meteorological conditions have assisted in spreading the pollutants released by firecrackers since the easterly to south-eastern winds with a speed of up to 10 km per hour have been blowing since Tuesday morning. According to India Meteorological Department, at the beginning of Tuesday, 5-7 km per hour demonstrated an increase to 10 km per hour in the course of the day. This, coupled with clear skies and warm days, enabled pollutants to shoot up and down, as well as, horizontally.
Stubble burning has had little effects on the quality of air in Delhi. According to the Decision Support System of the Centre, stubble burning contributed only to PM 2.5 levels during the Diwali day and on Tuesday, the contribution was only 0.8 and 1 percent respectively. This will slightly increase to 2.6 and 4.4 percent on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.
According to the forecasts provided by the Early Warning System, the range of the AQI of Delhi is expected to stay in the categories of very poor at least until Friday. The coming week will see air quality change between the level of poor and very poor because the winds are northeasterly and therefore cannot cause high stubble emissions to the city, however, the residents should still be careful of the continued pollution levels.
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