Delhi air quality stays in ‘very poor’ zone, GRAP III rolled back; cold wave in Punjab: All about AQI, weather today

Delhi was covered in a layer of toxic smog on Thursday. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reported that air quality remains in the ‘very poor’ category. The national capital recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 349 at 7 AM.

Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast cold wave conditions in Punjab for today.

Air Quality Management (GRAP)

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), which manages pollution response, announced on Wednesday that it would immediately lift all Stage III restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). This decision followed three days of improved air quality in Delhi.

The CAQM statement said that stage I & II actions will remain in effect. They must be implemented in accordance with the modified GRAP dated 21 November 2025. All concerned agencies in the National Capital Region (NCR) must strictly monitor and review these actions. This ensures that AQI levels do not slip further into the ‘Severe’ Category, the statement read.

The GRAP is a series of emergency measures implemented in the Delhi-NCR region. It aims to control air pollution in a phased manner, with actions escalating based on the severity of the AQI.

IMD weather predictions

According to the IMD’s All India Weather Warning Bulletin, isolated places in Maharashtra, Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Yanam, and Telangana are likely to receive heavy downpour throughout the day.

Isolated locations will also experience thunderstorms and lightning. This includes Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Sikkim, Odisha, Assam, Meghalaya, Madhya Maharashtra, and Marathawada.

In Delhi and its surrounding areas (Noida, Gurugram, Faridabad, and Ghaziabad), the weather will remain cloudy. The minimum and maximum temperatures are expected to be around 20 degrees Celsius and 32 degrees Celsius, respectively. Isolated pockets of fog are also expected in Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, and Himachal Pradesh.

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are expected to experience heavy to very heavy rainfall, accompanied by thundersqualls and strong winds.

IMD Ranchi Director, Abhishek Anand, provided an update for Jharkhand. He mentioned, “The temperature may fall by another 1.5 degrees by tomorrow morning. However, it is expected to rise by 2-4 degrees again in the next 2-3 days.”

He explained that the temperature variations are connected to two weather systems developing near the Indian Ocean. One is the Senyar cyclonic storm in Northeast Indonesia, which has intensified. Additionally, a low-pressure system has formed in the Southwest Bay of Bengal, which may intensify within 24 hours.