Delhi schools shut till November 5 as air quality worsens
- The Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) has declared a public health emergency
- The overall air quality index is now in 'emergency' category
Schools in Delhi will remain closed till November 5 in the wake of rising pollution in the national capital. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in a tweet said that the schools have been shut due to the increase of smoke coming from the burning of stubble. As the blanket of haze over Delhi has thickened, the overall air quality index has now gone up to "severe plus" or "emergency" category. The Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) has declared a public health emergency in the National Capital Region following severe pollution levels for the fifth consecutive day.
All the 37 air quality monitoring stations across Delhi today morning recorded the air quality in the severe category. Bawana was the most-polluted area with an AQI of 497, followed by Delhi Technological University (487), Wazirpur (485), Anand Vihar (484) and Vivek Vihar (482).
The higher the AQI value, the greater the level of air pollution and health concerns.
Neighbouring Ghaziabad was the most-polluted city in the country, with the levels of PM2.5 - tiny particulate matter less than 2.5 microns that can enter deep into the lungs - reaching as high as 493.
Greater Noida (480), Noida (477), and Faridabad (432) also breathed extremely polluted air. An AQI between 0-50 is considered “good”, 51-100 “satisfactory”, 101-200 “moderate”, 201-300 “poor”, 301-400 “very poor”, and 401-500 “severe”. Above 500 is “severe-plus or emergency” category.
Delhi is hoping for favourable meteorological conditions to blow away the toxic air, as health experts said the hazardous air pollution has become a serious health concern for about 2 crore residents.
Weather experts said increased wind speed due to a fresh western disturbance approaching the northern region would help disperse pollutants faster from Saturday.
The AQI takes into account five chief pollutants - particulate matter with a diameter less than 10 micrometres (PM10), PM2.5, ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and carbon monoxide (CO). (With PTI inputs)
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
MoreLess
First Published:1 Nov 2019, 02:53 PM IST
- Top Gainers
- Top Losers
- 52 Week High