The national capital and surrounding NCR region recorded a sharp decline in the quality of air during the weekend, which forced authorities to increase measures to control pollution. On Saturday, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) invoked Stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in the Delhi-NCR region because the pollution levels had already gotten to worrying heights. The air quality in most areas of Delhi was still in the severe category as the situation was not any better on Sunday morning.
According to the data presented by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), in Delhi, the number of 458 at approximately 11 am on December 14 placed the city squarely in a category of severe level of air pollution. The readings of some of these monitoring stations were recorded to be significantly over 400, which is a sign of dangerous air conditions and it is extremely dangerous to the health of the children, older adults and the people with respiratory illnesses.
Delhi was not the only city with the pollution crisis. On Saturday, Noida had the lowest air quality in the country, and its AQI was 455, which is a severe plus. CPCB data showed that Greater Noida was just behind with a reading of 442 of the AQI, which underscored the prevalence of poor air quality in the NCR.
Strict measures during Stage 4 of GRAP were implemented in response to the deteriorating situation. Among such measures, the physical classes with students up to Class 9 and Class 11 were switched to hybrid mode to minimize contact and curtail outdoor activities in the air of poisonous fumes.
In the future, the Air Quality Early Warning System, which predicts the air quality in the city of Delhi (AQEWS) is projecting that the air quality may not improve before Sunday and will continue to be in the severe category. Nonetheless, there is a ray of hope as a slight improvement of the conditions to the level of poor will occur by Monday, based on the weather patterns and wind flow.
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