New Delhi continues to choke on toxic air as anti-pollution measures fail; AQI at 345 at 7 am on Sunday, December 1. Ghaziabad is still under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Stage 4 and implementing three strategies, which include suspension of construction activities and limitation of usage of diesel generators, among others. However, these measures have not been enough to ensure a remarkable improvement of air quality.
The situation in Delhi was rather worrisome in November because even one day with AQI in the “poor” or better categories was not seen. Two days in November were defined as ‘severe plus’, the highest AQI category, two days at ‘very unhealthy’, and six days at ‘unhealthy’. Out of the total days this month, the majority, which is 22 days, were rated as very poor, thus illustrating that pollution was still rife in the capital.
According to the city’s Air Quality Early Warning System, the AQI will continue to be in the ‘very poor’ range in the next three days. The air quality index scale ranges from 0 to 50 as good, 51 to 100 as satisfactory, 101 to 200 as moderate, 201 to 300 as poor, 301 to 400 as very poor and 401 to 500 as severe. Air quality was worst in the East Delhi zone, followed by the South Delhi zone and Central Delhi zone, as per CPCB data. While the Lodhi Road monitoring station recorded AQI 246, many other monitoring stations presented AQI levels above 300.
Health organizations are still closely observing the development of the situation and asking people to stay cautious, especially children, the elderly and those with respiratory problems. However, the processes described above continue, and there are still significant concerns about further long-term strategies to address the chronic pollution problem in the city.
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