Delhi’s air still choking the morning after Diwali, AQI stuck at 376
In Delhi and the air just hits different. Thick, grey, heavy. Like someone threw a dirty blanket over the whole city overnight. The sun is up but it looks weak, almost orange through the haze. Visibility is bad in so many places. People walking with masks or scarves pulled up, eyes watering a bit, that familiar post-Diwali cough starting early.
According to the CPCB numbers, the city’s average AQI was sitting around 376 this morning – still firmly in the “very poor” zone. Some areas were way worse. Sonia Vihar hit 449, Burari Crossing around 445, Vivek Vihar 441, Jahangirpuri 439. Places like DTU, Rohini, Bawana, Chandni Chowk, ITO – all crossing 400 at different times. That’s severe air. You can feel it in your chest.
Diwali night itself pushed the 24-hour average to 376. Highest for the festival day in five years, from what the reports are saying. Crackers went off everywhere, green ones or not. The Supreme Court had allowed only certified green crackers in limited hours, but you know how it goes – a lot of places just ignored the timing. Smoke mixed with the regular winter mess: traffic, dust, and all that stubble burning smoke coming in from Punjab and Haryana. Winds were calm, so nothing moved. The pollution just sat there.
By Monday morning it hadn’t improved much. City average hovered near 370 for a while. Some independent apps showed even crazier spikes overnight before settling down. Official stations still had more than a dozen in the severe category. Rest were very poor. Only a few managed to stay just “poor.”
People in Inderlok and north Delhi were saying the same thing – it looked like fog but it wasn’t. Street lights still had that glow at 8 am. Autos and bikes moving slow. Pedestrians covering their faces. Hospitals are already expecting the usual rise in breathing problems. Kids, old people, anyone with asthma – they’re the ones who feel it first.
CAQM had already put Stage 3 of GRAP in place before Diwali, hoping to control things. Construction bans, older vehicle restrictions, all that. Still the festival smoke pushed the numbers up. The early warning system is saying it could go severe during the day and stay bad for the next few days. Low wind and farm fires aren’t helping.
This is the same story every year, isn’t it? Levels climb before Diwali, spike on the night, and the morning after feels worse. 376 is up there compared to the last few years. Last year and the ones before were better on the festival day itself.
On the ground it’s the usual practical talk. Parents keeping kids inside longer. People running air purifiers if they have them. Windows shut. Masks back on faces. Local groups full of the same questions – when will the wind pick up, how long is this lasting, did anyone actually check the cracker rules.
Authorities are watching the numbers hour by hour. Sameer app and CPCB dashboard are what most people are refreshing. Nearby cities in NCR are also bad, just not as bad as Delhi proper. Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad sitting in poor to very poor.
The smog has already made the morning commute slower and a bit risky. Airport and weather stations noted the low visibility early on. For regular people it’s simpler – breathing feels harder, the city looks washed out, and those leftover Diwali lights on balconies are half-hidden in the grey.
Numbers might shift a bit as the day goes on with temperature changes, but right now Delhi is still choking under very poor air, with several pockets deep in severe. Festival smoke, seasonal factors, stagnant weather – same old mix that leaves the capital gasping the morning after.
Sources: CPCB Sameer app and real-time data, The Tribune, Business Standard, CNBC-TV18, LiveMint, Daily Pioneer, Times Now, PTI reports, Air Quality Early Warning System, CAQM updates on GRAP Stage III.
Delhi’s air still choking the morning after Diwali, AQI stuck at 376
In Delhi and the air just hits different. Thick, grey, heavy. Like someone threw a dirty blanket over the whole city overnight. The sun is up but it looks weak, almost orange through the haze. Visibility is bad in so many places. People walking with masks or scarves pulled up, eyes watering a bit, that familiar post-Diwali cough starting early.
According to the CPCB numbers, the city’s average AQI was sitting around 376 this morning – still firmly in the “very poor” zone. Some areas were way worse. Sonia Vihar hit 449, Burari Crossing around 445, Vivek Vihar 441, Jahangirpuri 439. Places like DTU, Rohini, Bawana, Chandni Chowk, ITO – all crossing 400 at different times. That’s severe air. You can feel it in your chest.
Diwali night itself pushed the 24-hour average to 376. Highest for the festival day in five years, from what the reports are saying. Crackers went off everywhere, green ones or not. The Supreme Court had allowed only certified green crackers in limited hours, but you know how it goes – a lot of places just ignored the timing. Smoke mixed with the regular winter mess: traffic, dust, and all that stubble burning smoke coming in from Punjab and Haryana. Winds were calm, so nothing moved. The pollution just sat there.
By Monday morning it hadn’t improved much. City average hovered near 370 for a while. Some independent apps showed even crazier spikes overnight before settling down. Official stations still had more than a dozen in the severe category. Rest were very poor. Only a few managed to stay just “poor.”
People in Inderlok and north Delhi were saying the same thing – it looked like fog but it wasn’t. Street lights still had that glow at 8 am. Autos and bikes moving slow. Pedestrians covering their faces. Hospitals are already expecting the usual rise in breathing problems. Kids, old people, anyone with asthma – they’re the ones who feel it first.
CAQM had already put Stage 3 of GRAP in place before Diwali, hoping to control things. Construction bans, older vehicle restrictions, all that. Still the festival smoke pushed the numbers up. The early warning system is saying it could go severe during the day and stay bad for the next few days. Low wind and farm fires aren’t helping.
This is the same story every year, isn’t it? Levels climb before Diwali, spike on the night, and the morning after feels worse. 376 is up there compared to the last few years. Last year and the ones before were better on the festival day itself.
On the ground it’s the usual practical talk. Parents keeping kids inside longer. People running air purifiers if they have them. Windows shut. Masks back on faces. Local groups full of the same questions – when will the wind pick up, how long is this lasting, did anyone actually check the cracker rules.
Authorities are watching the numbers hour by hour. Sameer app and CPCB dashboard are what most people are refreshing. Nearby cities in NCR are also bad, just not as bad as Delhi proper. Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad sitting in poor to very poor.
The smog has already made the morning commute slower and a bit risky. Airport and weather stations noted the low visibility early on. For regular people it’s simpler – breathing feels harder, the city looks washed out, and those leftover Diwali lights on balconies are half-hidden in the grey.
Numbers might shift a bit as the day goes on with temperature changes, but right now Delhi is still choking under very poor air, with several pockets deep in severe. Festival smoke, seasonal factors, stagnant weather – same old mix that leaves the capital gasping the morning after.
Sources: CPCB Sameer app and real-time data, The Tribune, Business Standard, CNBC-TV18, LiveMint, Daily Pioneer, Times Now, PTI reports, Air Quality Early Warning System, CAQM updates on GRAP Stage III.
@Rohit Manral
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