Delhi-NCR air quality severe, no improvement for a few days

New Delhi, Nov 13 (IANS) The air quality further deteriorated on Tuesday, with national capital and the areas around seeing "severe" level air quality with no improvement due to weather conditions over the next few days.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi at 4 p.m. was 409 or severe against 399 at the same time on Monday. The air quality of Gurugram on Tuesday dropped to "very-poor" on Monday.

On Tuesday, parts of Delhi saw traces of rain, but these were not enough to settle the pollutants, experts said.

According to weather analysts, weather conditions are likely to remain the same till Friday. 

"The conditions will remain the same till November 16 after which Delhi would recieve dry and cold north-westerly winds which would disperse the pollutants," said Mahesh Palawat, director private weather agency Group Skymet.

The major pollutant PM2.5 or particles with diameter less than 2.5mm, were well above severe levels across Delhi-NCR.

At 6 p.m., the average aggregation of PM2.5 across 36 stations was 278 microgrammes per cubic meters against 271 units on Monday. The same acorss 49 areas of NCR was 270 units.

The safe limit for PM2.5 is 60 units as per national standards and 25 units according to the international standards. 

"Both PM2.5 and 10 get into the lungs and cause cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, but PM2.5 is more dangerous because it mixes with blood stream," Shambhavi Shukla, Senior research associate with the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), told IANS.

Warning people to skip walks and not to avoid all physical activity outdoors, System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) on Tuesday updated its warning.

"Stop any activity level if you experience any unusual coughing, chest discomfort, wheezing, breathing difficulty, or fatigue and consult Doctor. If the room has windows, close them. If the air conditioner provides a fresh air intake option, close it," SAFAR warns. 

On Tuesday, the AQI was 438 at Faridabad and Ghaziabad, 411 in Greater Noida and 426 in Noida, all falling under severe category.