AQI at 396: Delhi staggers govt office timings as air quality moves to ‘very poor’ category

The Capital, meanwhile, continued to reel nether a heavy broad of smog with lone a flimsy dip successful the Air Quality Index (AQI) recorded Friday. The AQI was 396 successful the ‘very poor’ class arsenic against Thursday’s 424 successful the ‘severe’ category. Moderate to shallow fog conditions prevailed implicit Delhi arsenic the visibility was 400 m astatine Safdarjung and 500 m astatine Palam successful the greeting and evening hours, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The temperatures remained 2 degrees supra mean connected Friday with the minimum astatine 15.6 degrees Celsius and the maximum astatine 30.5 degrees Celsius.

With stringent restrictions kicking in, officials besides assured a strict implementation of GRAP-III measures. Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai, who held a high-level gathering with cardinal departments Friday, announced the determination to present 106 shuttle autobus services by DTC to boost nationalist transport. “These buses volition tally 1,844 trips, with 40 autobus services specifically for authorities employees… The shuttle services volition link assorted colonies, including Dwarka, Nehru Place, and CGO Complex, and volition service offices successful areas specified arsenic Badarpur, Janakpuri, and Paharganj,” helium said, adding that the Metro bid volition tally 60 further trips.

The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) forecasts ‘very poor’ aerial prime for consequent six days. According to IITM’s Decision Support System data, vehicular contamination was the topmost home contributor astatine 13 per cent. The stubble-burning publication was astatine 33 per cent Thursday, arsenic per the data.