New Delhi, Nov 25: Delhi continued to grapple with hazardous air quality on Tuesday, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) remaining in the ‘very poor’ category amid fears that volcanic ash from Ethiopia may worsen pollution in the region.
Hayli Gubbi, a shield volcano located in Ethiopia’s Afar region, erupted on Sunday, sending a massive ash plume up to approximately 14 km (45,000 feet) into the atmosphere. Forecast models from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) indicated that the ash cloud would move eastward across the Red Sea before drifting towards China, moving away from India by 7:30 pm on Tuesday.
According to the morning bulletin from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the national capital recorded an AQI of 360 on Tuesday, slightly lower than Monday’s 382. Rohini, one of the city’s monitoring stations, reported ‘severe’ air quality with a reading of 416, according to the Sameer app developed by the CPCB.
Experts warned that the air quality is likely to remain in the ‘very poor’ range over the next few days. “Residents should minimise outdoor activities, particularly children, the elderly, and those with respiratory issues,” noted a CPCB official.
The CPCB classifies AQI values between 0 and 50 as ‘good’, 51 to 100 as ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 as ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 as ‘poor’, 301 to 400 as ‘very poor’, and 401 to 500 as ‘severe’.
On the weather front, the IMD reported that Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 9 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, 2.3 degrees below the season’s average. The maximum temperature is expected to hover around 27 degrees Celsius, accompanied by mist and moderate fog. “The combination of low wind speeds and lingering haze is contributing to poor air dispersion in the city,” an IMD spokesperson noted.
