Parts of Delhi and its neighboring areas, including Noida, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram, woke up to dense fog on Thursday. The cold weather was compounded by an Air Quality Index (AQI) hovering between the ‘very poor’ to nearly 'severe-plus' category. At around 6 am, Delhi's overall AQI stood at 448, just two points shy of the severe-plus category. According to the Sameer app, which provides hourly updates on the National Air Quality Index, 21 out of the 37 monitoring stations in Delhi recorded AQI levels in the severe-plus range.

North India continues to grapple with biting cold conditions, with parts of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir recording temperatures below freezing. The combination of cold weather and poor air quality has heightened discomfort across the region.

The AQI in Delhi at 6 am on Thursday was 448, categorized as ‘severe.’ For context, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) defines AQI levels as follows: 0-50 is "good," 51-100 "satisfactory," 101-200 "moderate," 201-300 "poor," 301-400 "very poor," 401-450 "severe," and above 450 “severe-plus.” In Ghaziabad, the AQI was 381, while Noida and Gurugram recorded AQI levels of 364 and 376, respectively.

The monitoring stations in Delhi that registered AQI in the severe-plus range included Wazirpur (482), Vivek Vihar (472), Rohini (477), Punjabi Bagh (475), Nehru Nagar (485), ITO (479), Jahangirpuri (476), and Anand Vihar (478).

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted dense fog in Delhi until Friday, influenced by western disturbances. Dr. Soma Roy of the IMD explained that minimum temperatures are likely to drop further due to these disturbances. On Wednesday, foggy conditions reduced visibility across parts of Delhi, with the minimum temperature dropping to 5 degrees Celsius. Earlier, on Tuesday, the city recorded a temperature of 7.4 degrees Celsius at 2:30 am.

Lower hills and plains in Himachal Pradesh are experiencing a severe cold wave. The local meteorological office has issued an orange alert for cold to severe cold wave conditions in four out of the state’s 12 districts, including Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, and Mandi, until Saturday. Additionally, a yellow warning has been issued for cold wave conditions in Chamba and Kangra districts.

Tabo in the Lahaul and Spiti district recorded the lowest night temperature at minus 7.4 degrees Celsius. Several other places in the lower hills also recorded minimum temperatures near freezing, exacerbating the cold wave's impact.

The combination of severe air pollution and extreme weather underscores the need for precautions and interventions to address the worsening conditions in affected regions.

DIsclaimer:This image is taken from PTI Photo.