Visibility Drops, Pollution Rises: Delhi-NCR battles winter smog

Dense fog has covered the Delhi-NCR region on Tuesday to the extent of reducing visibility and making the already poor air quality conditions worse.

In the early hours of the day, a thick sheet of fog and smog covered the city which affected the whole daily routine and gave serious troubles to the commuters.

Flight operations affected at IGI Airport

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The low visibility was still a problem for the flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport and this has been the case since a few days as the combination of smog and fog has been persistent in the city's area leading to cancellation and delay of flights.

Though the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has resorted to all the measures of Stage IV under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across the NCR, the air quality has been suffocating.

AQI levels enter ‘very poor’ and ‘severe’ categories

As per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the average Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi at 7 a.m. on Tuesday was around 390, thus putting it in the 'very poor' category.

Many regions in the national capital recorded AQI levels exceeding 400 which is a clear sign of very high pollution.

Srinivaspuri had the worst AQI value of 438 followed by Mundka which reported 422.

Other areas were Okhla 396, RK Puram 376, Anand Vihar 397, and Noida Sector 1 which recorded 403. The smog layer also covered the Akshardham region where the AQI was around 384.

Gurugram's Sector 51 was next with AQI reading of 386, while Vasundhara in Ghaziabad reported a slightly better level of 374.

Considering how close Bahadurgarh was to Delhi, it was the city with the most serious pollution problem as this urban area experienced a complete blockage of view which led to difficulties for drivers.

The air situation in Bahadurgarh was not so good where the AQI level went up to 308, the minimum temperature there was also very low at only 7 degrees Celsius.

The levels of pollution in a number of sectors reached the 'extremely poor' category. Area-wise AQI for Noida was Sector 62 at 396, Sector 116 at 426, Sector 125 at 420, Knowledge Park 3 in Greater Noida at 339 and Knowledge Park 5 at 407.

Concentration of PM2.5 and PM10 particles stayed dangerously high across the region, pointing towards serious health concerns for residents as winter conditions continue to worsen.

What are PM10 and PM2.5 particles?

PM10 and PM2.5 are small particles in the air that are polluted. PM10 particles are larger and the main target of their impact is the nose, throat, and lungs. PM2.5 particles are smaller and pose a greater risk as they can penetrate deep into the lungs and even get to the blood.

The two sources are mainly the same, namely cars, factories, dust, and burning fuels.