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6d ago

Delhi Air Quality Improves to 'Poor' as CAQM Lifts GRAP Stage IV

Forecasters caution that weakening winds could push pollution back to 'very poor' within days.

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In Noida region, between December 14 and December 22, dust suppression formed a key part of the response as pollution control measure (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)
Commuters use face masks to avoid air pollution.
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Overview

  • Delhi’s overall AQI stood near 220–221 on Thursday morning after a 24-hour average of 271 on Wednesday, improving sharply from 412 a day earlier, CPCB data showed.
  • CAQM revoked GRAP Stage IV across NCR following the improvement, while actions under Stages I–III remain in force and closed construction or demolition units need explicit clearance to restart.
  • Stronger surface winds of roughly 15–25 kmph and higher atmospheric mixing drove the short-term drop in pollution, according to IMD and IITM assessments.
  • AQEWS and IMD forecast a return to the ‘very poor’ band from Thursday to Saturday, with yellow alerts for dense or isolated fog that could reduce visibility and affect transport.
  • Air quality varied across the city, with several stations in ‘moderate’ (Lodhi Road, IIT Delhi, IGI Airport, Aya Nagar) as DSS/IITM source data identified vehicular emissions as the largest share of PM2.5 at about 17.5%.