Delhi pollution: No relief for Delhi-NCR as air quality remains 'very poor'; schools to conduct classes in...

Delhi’s air quality shows no improvement as it remains in the inferior bracket. Over the past few days, the Air Quality Index of the national capital has been ranging from ‘severe’ to ‘very poor’ category, with no signs of relief for the residents suffering from pollution implications. On Tuesday morning, the Central Pollution Control Board recorded an AQI of 344 in the city.

The air quality of Delhi’s areas like Anand Vihar, Ashok Vihar, and Wazirpur among others saw slight improvement on Monday. However, it again plummeted to the ‘severe’ category. Anand Vihar recorded AQI of 431, Ashok Vihar at 420, Bawana at 424, Jahangirpuri at 422, Mundka at 443, Narela at 415, Punjabi Bagh at 414 and Wazirpur at 423. For those unaware, AQI between 0 and 50 as ‘good’, between 51 and 100 as ‘satisfactory’, between 101 and 200 as ‘moderate’, between 201 and 300 as ‘poor’, between 301 and 400 as ‘very poor’, and over 400 as ‘severe’.

The Supreme Court on Monday ordered not to relax Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)-IV regulations aimed at reducing Delhi's air pollution. According to CPCB, the national capital's Air Quality Index (AQI) was 338 (Very Poor) at 3 pm on Monday. The apex court mandated that schools remain shuttered until Wednesday.

“Our suggestion is to see the AQI label for the next two days.. bring the data the day after tomorrow, then we will see what the trend is in the last two days and then take a decision on the matter related to the opening of educational institutions,” the Court said. Last week, GRAP-4 was imposed in Delhi after the air quality index (AQI) plunged into the city's ‘severe plus’ category. Schools, colleges, and other educational institutions were closed after the restrictions.