According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR-India), the air quality in the nation’s capital remained in the “very poor” category on Friday, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) readings exceeding 350 in multiple locations. At 7:55 a.m. on Friday, the Capital’s overall AQI stood at 388. The national capital’s air quality did, however, slightly improve from the “severe” to the “very poor” category in a few areas, according to the pollution data released on Friday, but it was still dangerous for locals.
The AQI in the Pusa area was recorded at 403 as of 7.55 am while IIT Delhi logged an AQI of 579.
Further, the AQI in the Lodhi Road area was recorded at 359 while the Delhi University area and the Airport (Terminal-3) area recorded AQIs at 386 and 398 respectively.
According to data shared by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the AQI in Anand Vihar was at 411 while those in Alipur, Wazirpur and RK Puram were recorded in the ‘severe’ range at 432, 443, and 422 respectively.
A score of 0 represents “good,” 100 to 200 represents “moderate,” 200 to 300 represents “poor,” 300 to 400 represents “very poor,” and 400 to 500 or higher represents “severe” on the Air Quality Index. The AQI is a tool for clearly and concisely conveying to people the current state of the air quality. It reduces complex data on the quality of the air caused by different pollutants to a single number (the index value), color, and nomenclature.