Overview
- Delhi’s 24-hour average AQI was 418 on Wednesday and hovered near 405 on Thursday morning, with 27 of 39 monitoring stations in the ‘severe’ range.
- Stubble burning accounted for 22.47% of Delhi’s PM2.5 on Wednesday, surpassing transport at about 15.5%, with DSS projections showing the share easing to roughly 10% on Thursday as winds shift.
- Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan is in force across NCR, suspending non-essential construction, restricting BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel cars, and shifting primary classes to hybrid mode.
- The Supreme Court ordered Punjab and Haryana to file status reports on curbing stubble burning before a November 17 hearing, after concerns over data gaps and alleged attempts to evade satellite detection.
- The regional crisis deepened as Lahore ranked among the world’s most polluted cities, with local hotspots reporting AQI readings above 600 and hospitals reporting surges in respiratory cases.