A thick blanket of smog enveloped several parts of Delhi in the early hours of Monday, a day after Diwali, as the national capital's air quality deteriorated to the ‘severe’ category. The sharp decline in air quality also significantly reduced visibility across several areas.
According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the monitoring station at ITO recorded an alarming AQI of 406 at around 4:20 am on Monday, placing it in the ‘severe’ category.
Several other prominent locations continued to experience ‘very poor’ air quality. Rajiv Chowk recorded an AQI of 381 at 1:30 am, while the South Extension area registered an AQI of 360 at around 4:00 am, CPCB data showed.
Despite restrictions on firecracker use, several parts of Delhi witnessed fireworks on Sunday evening. Reports of firecracker bursting emerged from areas such as Pitampura, Burari, Mayur Vihar and parts of Lutyens' Delhi.
On Sunday, air quality at 20 monitoring stations had already slipped into the ‘severe’ category, even as Delhi's overall AQI stood at 371 at 10 pm.
The deteriorating air quality has also triggered a political confrontation between the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Former Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi on Monday criticised the BJP-led government over the worsening pollution, questioning how long residents would be forced to breathe toxic air. She called for concrete measures to tackle the crisis instead of political rhetoric.
“The AQI has reached dangerous levels, and with every breath, the threat to people's health grows. How much longer will Delhi's people be forced to breathe this toxic air? The BJP government must answer. We need concrete action on pollution, not just rhetoric,” Oberoi wrote on X.
Meanwhile, Delhi Minister Kapil Mishra launched an attack on the AAP, alleging that a campaign was being orchestrated at party leader Arvind Kejriwal's residence to target the Hindu festival of Diwali under the pretext of pollution.
