The national capital Delhi woke up to poor air quality on Friday morning, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data. At around 8 am, the overall air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 387, placing it in the ‘very poor’ category.
The air quality in the city became worse than Thursday, when the AQI was 373 at 4 pm. Large parts of the city remained under the grip of poisonous smoke.
Anand Vihar was hit by dense fog, with the AQI at 437, placing it in the ‘severe’ category. There was also a thick layer of fog in the areas around ITO, Ghazipur, Palam and Greater Noida.
According to CPCB data, Vivek Vihar (436), Punjabi Bagh (412), R.K. The air quality deteriorated further in several areas including Puram (436) and Nehru Nagar (425) and fell into the ‘severe’ category. Wazirpur also recorded ‘severe’ air quality, where the AQI stood at 406.
However, there was a slight difference in air quality in many parts of Delhi this morning. For example, Dilshad Garden recorded an AQI of 356, which was better than other places, but the air quality was still poor. Other areas like Mandir Marg (342), Rohini (396) and North Campus (349) also showed marginal improvement, but the air quality remained in the ‘very poor’ category.
As per AQI classification, 0-50 is ‘good’, 51-100 ‘satisfactory’, 101-200 ‘moderate’, 201-300 ‘poor’, 301-400 ‘very poor’ and 401-500 ‘severe’.
Earlier, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa had conducted surprise inspections at several petrol pumps, including at the Delhi-Gurugram border and Janpath, to review compliance with the ‘No PUC, No Fuel’ directive.
He interacted with the pump staff and instructed them to enforce the rules while remaining calm and polite. He said, “You are the first point of contact in this campaign. Cooperate with people and make them understand that this rule is for their and their children’s health.”
The Minister also directed that clear signage, announcements and better queue management should be ensured.
Speaking to vehicle owners present at the spot, he said, “This is not a matter of issuing challans; it is a question of clean air. Every valid PUCC issued today is a small victory in our fight against pollution.”
On December 17, 29,938 PUCCs were issued in Delhi. Till 5.20 pm on December 18, 31,974 new certificates were issued. Thus, the total number crossed the 61,000 mark in almost a day. The government hopes to further increase the number of people availing PUCC before filling up petrol or diesel.
“More than 60,000 people receiving PUCC in a single day shows that when citizens are confident that steps are being taken in public interest, they extend full cooperation,” the minister said.
