Delhi air quality remains very poor as AQI slips to 341

Delhi continued to grapple with unhealthy air on Wednesday morning with the Air Quality Index AQI pegged at 341 around 7 am according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board CPCBWhile the AQI showed a slight improvement from Tuesday morningrsquos reading of 397 pollution levels stayed firmly in the lsquovery poorrsquo category raising persistent health concernsmdashespecially for children senior citizens and people with respiratory conditionsSeveral pollution hotspots report alarming AQI readingsMultiple locations across the capital reported alarmingly high AQI levels Anand Vihar and Ashok Vihar both recorded readings of 388 while Wazirpur stood at 386 Other heavily polluted areas included Punjabi Bagh 374 RK Puram 377 Bawana 383 ITO 369 Chandni Chowk 369 and Dwarka Sector 8 376 underscoring the widespread nature of the pollutionAQI scale highlights severity of current air qualityUnder the AQI scale values between 0ndash50 are considered lsquogoodrsquo 51ndash100 lsquosatisfactoryrsquo 101ndash200 lsquomoderatersquo 201ndash300 lsquopoorrsquo 301ndash400 lsquovery poorrsquo and 401ndash500 lsquoseverersquoFoggy conditions add to deteriorating air qualityAdding to the grim conditions the India Meteorological Department IMD reported moderate fog in several parts of the city with dense fog at isolated locations The temperature hovered around 9 degrees Celsius at 7 amStage IV GRAP measures revoked agencies asked to stay alertEarlier amid the worsening air quality the Commission for Air Quality Management CAQM had invoked Stage IV measures of the Graded Response Action Plan GRAP across Delhi and the National Capital Region NCR However the commission later revoked its January 17 2026 orders enforcing Stage IV actions which come into effect when AQI levels cross 450 and enter the lsquoseverersquo categoryDespite the rollback authorities have directed all implementing agencies in the NCR to remain on high alert and strictly enforce preventive steps under GRAP Stages I II and III to ensure air quality does not deteriorate further Continuous monitoring and regular reviews will remain in place to curb any slide into the lsquoseverersquo zoneMeanwhile the winter chill in the capital has begun to ease graduallyThe maximum temperature is hovering around 24 degrees Celsius while the minimum temperature has settled close to 7 degrees Celsius offering some respite from the cold even as pollution continues to pose serious health risks