Primary Pollutant

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New Delhi Air Quality Index (AQI) | India

Real-time PM2.5, PM10 air pollution level Delhi

Last Update: 29 Mar 2024, 02:49am

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Comparative Exposure with New Delhi

24 hrs avg AQI

New Delhi

India

Major Air Pollutants in New Delhi

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New Delhi pm10 icon
145 (PM10)
Carbon-mono-oxide icon
728 (CO)
New Delhi nitrogen dioxide no2 icon
34 (NO2)

PM2.5 3.8X

The current PM2.5 concentration in New Delhi is 3.8 times above the recommended limit given by the WHO 24 hrs air quality guidelines value.

New Delhi - Locations Air Pollution Level

LOCATIONS Status AQI-US AQI-IN PM2.5 PM10 Temp Humid
ITI Shahdra POOR 142 130 52 145 23 80
Loni POOR 155 129 64 144 23 58
Pooth Khurd POOR 155 188 63 232 29 53
Ihbas POOR 158 137 70 156 23 81
ITI Jahangirpuri POOR 159 222 67 272 29 53
Narela POOR 129 104 47 106 23 57
Mother Dairy Plant POOR 172 223 97 212 24 80
Sonia Vihar Water Treatment Plant Djb POOR 127 111 46 117 24 80
Alipur POOR 155 129 63 143 23 57
Punjabi Bagh POOR 157 287 68 189 29 53
Sri Auribindo Margta POOR 149 105 55 107 24 80
Shaheed Sukhdev College Of Business Studies POOR 154 137 62 156 29 53
Delhi Institute Of Tool Engineering POOR 152 143 57 164 29 53
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium MODERATE 91 100 31 100 24 80
Satyawati College POOR 132 121 48 132 24 81
Mandir Marg POOR 107 110 38 116 24 80
Mundka POOR 194 315 139 289 29 53
RK Puram POOR 154 114 62 121 24 80
Pusa POOR 155 147 64 171 24 80
Anand Vihar POOR 171 218 95 219 24 79
PGDAV College POOR 154 121 61 132 24 80
New Delhi Us Embassy POOR 139 128 51 142 24 80
Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium POOR 151 121 56 131 24 80
Lajpat Nagar POOR 129 110 47 115 26 58
Prashant Vihar POOR 153 158 59 187 26 58
Saket Block C POOR 142 105 52 108 26 58
Embassy of Belgium POOR 117 104 42 106 26 58
LIC Colony POOR 166 183 85 211 25 61
Sir Edmund Hillary Marg POOR 124 105 45 108 26 58
Shastri Nagar POOR 144 132 53 148 26 58
Uttam Nagar POOR 161 157 75 186 26 58
Ashok Vihar Phase 1 POOR 137 127 50 141 26 58
Rohini Sector 7 POOR 151 141 56 161 26 58
Hari Nagar POOR 160 157 72 185 25 61
Vasundhara Enclave POOR 160 154 73 181 25 61
Golf Links POOR 119 106 43 109 25 61
Punjabi Bagh Block D POOR 156 152 66 178 25 61
Anand Lok POOR 122 107 44 110 26 58
Ashok Vihar Phase 3 POOR 129 122 47 133 26 58
Green Park POOR 129 104 47 106 26 58
Defence Colony POOR 122 107 44 110 26 58
Karol Bagh POOR 134 125 49 138 26 58
Kalkaji POOR 147 125 54 137 26 58
HT House POOR 127 115 46 123 25 61
Okhla Phase II POOR 139 126 51 139 25 61
Katwaria Sarai POOR 132 101 48 102 26 58
Ramesh Park POOR 157 141 68 162 25 61
Chanakya Puri POOR 129 104 47 106 26 58
Rohini Sector 30 POOR 152 149 57 174 26 58
Anand Parbat POOR 142 129 52 144 26 58
Kohat Enclave POOR 147 141 54 162 26 58
Greater Kailash II POOR 137 121 50 131 26 58
Mori Gate POOR 129 118 47 127 26 58
Shalimar Bagh POOR 139 132 51 148 26 58
Panchsheel Vihar POOR 129 107 47 110 26 58
Mukherjee Nagar POOR 124 114 45 121 26 58
Rohini Sector 24 POOR 149 137 55 156 26 58
Dwarka Sector 10 POOR 160 153 72 179 26 58
Model Town POOR 129 121 47 132 26 58
Ghazipur POOR 166 180 84 194 26 58
Rohini Sector 15 POOR 151 140 56 160 26 58
Ashok Vihar Phase 4 POOR 127 119 46 128 26 58
Janakpuri POOR 160 156 73 184 26 58
Shahdara POOR 153 131 60 146 26 58
Wazirpur POOR 137 129 50 143 26 58
Malviya Nagar POOR 134 101 49 101 26 58
Rajinder Nagar POOR 129 123 47 135 26 58
GTB Nagar POOR 152 128 58 142 26 58
Raghubir Nagar POOR 156 150 66 175 25 61
Civil Lines POOR 129 119 47 129 26 58
New Friends Colony POOR 142 119 52 129 26 58
Sheikh Sarai POOR 127 103 46 104 26 58
Naraina Industrial Area POOR 155 145 64 168 26 58
Inderlok POOR 129 122 47 133 26 58
Jangpura POOR 105 101 37 101 26 58
Vasant Kunj POOR 134 100 49 100 26 58
Dwarka Sector 11 POOR 159 151 71 177 26 58
Greater Kailash POOR 132 119 48 129 26 58
Ashok Vihar Phase 2 POOR 134 126 49 139 26 58
Hastsal POOR 161 156 74 184 26 58
Delhi Cantt POOR 129 104 47 106 26 58
Diplomatic Enclave POOR 119 101 43 102 26 58
Bawana Industrial Area POOR 144 141 53 162 25 61
Gulmohar Park Block B POOR 122 101 44 102 26 58
Hauz Khas POOR 124 98 45 98 26 58
I P Extension POOR 167 190 87 198 26 58
Niti Marg POOR 119 101 43 102 26 58
Bali Nagar POOR 155 148 64 172 25 61
Sukhdev Vihar POOR 134 119 49 128 26 58
Delhi Gymkhana Club POOR 117 98 42 98 26 58
Paschim Vihar POOR 155 148 64 172 26 58
Dwarka Sector 6 POOR 159 151 71 176 26 58
Saket POOR 129 101 47 101 26 58
Dwarka Sector 23 POOR 157 147 67 170 26 58
Safdarjung Enclave POOR 132 103 48 104 26 58
Darya Ganj POOR 142 123 52 135 25 61
Deepali POOR 151 139 56 159 26 58
Dwarka Sector 12 POOR 159 151 71 176 26 58
Dwarka Sector 7 POOR 157 146 67 169 26 58
Bhalswa Landfill POOR 149 155 55 183 26 58
Dwarka Sector 5 POOR 156 144 66 166 26 58
Dwarka Sector 18B POOR 159 150 71 175 26 58
Dwarka Sector 3 POOR 158 147 69 171 26 58
Mayur Vihar POOR 164 170 81 186 26 58
Vasant Vihar POOR 132 104 48 106 26 58
Sukhdev Vihar DDA Flats POOR 132 117 48 125 26 58
Kashmiri Gate ISBT POOR 127 116 46 124 26 58
New Sarup Nagar POOR 153 170 59 205 26 58
Mustafabad POOR 151 122 56 133 25 61
Siddhartha Enclave POOR 129 110 47 115 26 58
Hazrat Nizamuddin MODERATE 99 98 35 98 26 58
Connaught Place POOR 132 117 48 125 26 58
East Patel Nagar POOR 139 128 51 142 26 58
Saraswati Marg POOR 149 133 55 150 26 58
Loni Dehat POOR 142 116 52 124 25 61
Surya Nagar POOR 156 140 65 160 25 61
Rohini Sector 10 POOR 149 131 55 147 25 61
Rohini Sector 5 POOR 142 130 52 145 25 61
RK Puram North Block POOR 137 103 50 104 26 58

Weather Conditions in New Delhi

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What are the weather and climatic conditions in New Delhi?
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Temperature icon
˚C | ˚F

Local Time

|


Sunrise
Sunset
06:26 AM
06:26 PM
Wind Speed Icon

Wind speed

33 km/h

UV Index Icon

UV Index

16

Pressure Icon

Pressure

800 mb


Health Advice For New Delhi

How to protect yourself from air pollution around New Delhi, India?
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Wear Mask

Required
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Stay Indoor

Required
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Windows

Keep Close
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Use Purifier

Required
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Family

Allow Outdoor

New Delhi Air Quality Forecast



Day

AQI

Weather


Temp.


Today

134

AQI

1st day weather condition icon


Friday

134

AQI

2nd day weather condition icon


Saturday

134

AQI

3rd day weather condition icon


Sunday

134

AQI

4th day weather condition icon


Monday

134

AQI

5th day weather condition icon


Tuesday

134

AQI

6th day weather condition icon


Wednesday

134

AQI

7th day weather condition icon



New Delhi

AQI Calendar

0-50
Good
51-100
Moderate
101-200
Poor
201-300
Unhealthy
301-400
Severe
401-500
Hazardous

Most Polluted Cities in India

Least Polluted Cities in India


Comparative Exposure with New Delhi

24 hrs avg AQI

New Delhi

Delhi

India



FAQs of New Delhi Air Quality Index

(Frequently Asked Questions)


Quick answers to some commonly asked questions about the air pollution of New Delhi.


The real-time air quality in New Delhi is 133 (POOR) AQI now. This was last updated 5 minutes ago .

The current concentration of PM2.5 in New Delhi is 57 (µg/m³). The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends 15 µg/m³ as the threshold concentration of PM2.5 for 24 hrs mean. Currently, the concentration is 2.28 times the recommended limit.

Generally, the air quality at New Delhi starts deteriorating in late October. The winters are the worst-hit season in terms of air pollution.

You should wear a good N95 mask when you go outdoor in New Delhi until the AQI is improving upto moderate range.

Office going people should avoid personal vehicles and use public transportations or carpooling.

(i) The primary causes of outdoor air pollution are solid, liquid particles called aerosols & gase from vehicles emissions, construction activities, factories, burning stubble & fossil fuels and wildfire, etc.


(ii) Main causes of indoor air pollution are harmful gases from cooking fuels (such as wood, crop wastes, charcoal, coal and dung), damp, mould smoke, chemicals from cleaning materials, etc.

Indoor air pollution in New Delhi is as dangerous as outdoor pollution, because the air pollutants come inside the houses or buildings through doors, windows and ventilation.

In New Delhi , you must use an air purifier or fresh air machine at home or office indoor and close all the doors, windows and ventilations when the outdoor air quality index (aqi) in New Delhi is very high. Proper ventilation is highly recommended only when outdoor air quality is improving and moderate AQI range.




World's Most Polluted Cities & Countries AQI Ranking

Real-time top most polluted cities, and monthly & annual historic AQI ranking of cities & countries

prana air cair+ indoor air quality monitor for New Delhi

New Delhi AIR POLLUTION

A report by the Environmental Performance Index in 2014 said that a total decline of 100 percent was seen in the air quality of India in the last 10 years and the city that has been hit the greatest is the capital city, New Delhi, India. Research by Berkeley Earth revealed that on an average, when the AQI is in a relatively better state than the usual, breathing that air still means that pollutants equal to the same amount as 31 cigarettes smoke entering your lungs.


With statistics like these, all of us need to be educated and concerned about the rising Delhi pollution level. Learn about the causes and effects of Delhi air pollution so that we can understand the problem and try to bring a change on a personal and public level.


What are the Main Sources & Causes of Delhi Pollution?

There are many causes and sources of Delhi air pollution like stubble burning, vehicle emissions, industrial pollution, construction, cold weather, geographic location, stagnant winds, population growth, Badarpur thermal power plant, fire in Bhalswa Landfills, etc.


1. Agricultural Stubble Burning

Agricultural stubble burning has been the major caterer to the rising air pollution and smog in Delhi. The problem is that as there is a very short time gap between the harvesting of paddy and wheat, the straw from the last harvest needs to be disposed off as soon as possible. The government has suggested the farmers do manual or mechanical management of straw but as the process is expensive and takes more time, farmers switch back to their traditional practice of stubble burning. Thousands of crores have been spent by the Central and the State government of India, a ban has been put on the practice but stubble burning has not come under control yet. The smoke from this agricultural burning gets transported to Delhi because of the westerly winds. According to a study by IIT Kanpur, agricultural burning is the third largest contributor towards particulate matters in Delhi.


2. Vehicular Emissions

It is the number one contributor to the PM2.5 and PM10 particles in Delhi which is 28%. And overall, out of the total air pollution, 41 percent is due to vehicular emissions. Vehicular emissions have a large number of carbon monoxide in them. Long exposure to it can cause death and more and more vehicular emission is causing CO to accumulate in our atmosphere.


3. Industrial Pollution

Delhi has the highest number of small-scale industries in India and they do not respect any limits on the emission of toxic fumes and pollutants. They are the second highest contributor to the poor air quality of Delhi with 3182 industries.


4. Dust By Construction Pollution

Construction and dust pollution has been one of the major factors that led to this massive air pollution in Delhi. According to DPCC, 30 percent of the Pollution in Delhi has been due to the construction and demolition. This pollution is not much under attention and the government right now is taking steps to change that.


5. Fire in Bhalswa Landfills

Bhalswa Landfill is a dumping ground that has been in use since 1984. It spread about 52 acres and has reached to heights of 62 metres. It has been creating havoc in Delhi for years now. The landfill has been used beyond its capacity way before but still no waste management has been done. The waste that keeps lying around starts decomposing and because the volume of waste is so high that the whole area becomes prone to a fire. Because of the nature of the waste, the smoke from the fire not only produces a large amount of particulate matter, it also releases toxic amounts of Carbon Monoxide, Hydrogen Sulphide among the few. In 2019 also, an incident where a fire started that set the landfill and Jahangirpuri ablaze.


6. Colder Weather

Cold weather in Delhi has also managed to be a significant part of Delhi pollution. As the temperature dips in Delhi, it lowers the aversion height of all the smog and other particulate matters in the air. Aversion height is the altitude from ground towards the sky, till which the particulate matter can rise. During summers, the aversion height is much above and far from the ground so all the pollutants rise up and are not much harmful to us . But when the winters come, the aversion height drops, which leads to all the smog being a part of the air we inhale.


7. Stagnant Winds

With a huge amount of pollutants being dispersed in the Delhi air daily, stagnant winds can cause a problem. When these huge amounts of pollutants don’t get a good speed of the wind, they start accumulating at a place which causes a hazy smog and doesn’t let the pollutants spread out.


8. Geographic Location

Delhi is landlocked between the states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh which and Himalayas and due to this, the winds that can carry the pollutants is near to non-existent. The winds that come from the coastal region carry pollutants with them which get trapped by the Himalayas i.e. in Delhi. For example, Chennai’s vehicle density is 19 times more than Delhi’s but still Chennai has a moderate amount of particulate matter in its air because as its a coastal region and all its pollutants get carried away.


9. Population Growth

Population growth is the grass-root cause of air pollution. More people means more vehicles, more amenities, more industrial products, more agricultural practices. Delhi saw a stark population increase from 2011 to 2019. The population went from 16.7 million in 2011 to 20 million in 2019.


10. Not Enough Public Transportation

Even though Delhi boasts of managing the world’s biggest fleet of buses under it, this system needs to be bigger and better. Because as the public transport will be better and cheaper, then only there will be less vehicular emissions. Even though Delhi is 14 times bigger than Paris, Paris’s metro line is double the length of Delhi's.


11. Lack of Active monitoring
Earlier also, active monitoring wasn’t done which led to a sudden realization after years that pollutant levels in the air have shooted. Active monitoring could have helped know the rising patterns of the air pollution so that it could be curbed at its initial days.


12. Badarpur Thermal Power Plant
Badarpur Thermal Power Plant has been one of the major contributors to air pollution in Delhi in the past. But in 2015, it was seen that even though its share in electricity supply in Delhi was approximately 8 percent,but its share in the total number of particulate matters in Delhi was 80-90%.It was shut down in 2015 as a measure to reduce the number of air pollutants in the air.


History of Delhi Pollution: How has it been through the years?


1980s: The Start: Delhi started seeing a rise in the pollution levels in the 80’s where the emergence of vehicles started taking a toll on the air and stubble burning started in the states of Punjab and Haryana. At that time, riots were also on a high after Indira Gandhi got assassinated and banning burning of crops seemed like an anti-religion rule so all the state governments avoided rolling it out and thus the pollution started rising.

1996: The situation of the city worsened to which the Supreme Court ordered the Delhi Government to submit a plan on how they plan on reducing the rising Delhi air pollution.

1998: Increase in Diesel run vehicles peaked the amount of PM2.5 particles in the air.

2000: There was an enormous increase in a lot of pollution causing activities like construction, industrial manufacturing and vehicular emissions. From the 2000 to 2010, the level of PM10 particles in air went from moderate to poor levels. Vehicles also increased in the capital city of India with an annual growth rate of 10.75%.

2004: The National Air Quality Index was introduced seeing the air pollution scenario. Under the NAQI, air was categorized into six levels. good, satisfactory, moderate, poor, very poor and severe/hazardous to differentiate how polluted the air was.

2016: In October 2016, Delhi underwent a major smog episode, one of its first in line of the other that came through. Air Quality Index. As the Diwali season set in, the PM2.5 level in Delhi city reached approximately 750 μg/m3 to the horror of everyone. The AQI levels reached close to 13 times more than the permissible amount. This awoke Delhi and its officials and the government bodies to the devastating effects of air pollution. The whole city got covered with smog.

2017 - The Great Smog of Delhi:

The incident known as the great smog has been the most devastating phase Delhi had to go through in terms of air pollution. The PM2.5 and PM 10 levels, whose healthy limits are 60-100 μg/m3 rose to 999 μg/m3 which was the highest level the sensors could calculate.

The same year in November 2017, on the second day of a test match between Sri-Lanka and India 2 players started vomiting due to the humongous amount of smog and pollutants in the air.

2019 November: A public health emergency was declared due to the smog and air pollution and holidays were announced till November 5.

What are the effects of Delhi Air Pollution?


1. Health Problems

In Delhi, poor air quality has damaged the lungs of half of the children in Delhi, according to WHO. As PM2.5 is such a small particle it can easily enter one’s lungs and erode one’s respiratory wellness.Increased risks of cancer, epilepsy and diabetes has also been seen among the children.


PM2.5 and PM10 particles are the main causes of reduced lung capacity. This in turn leads to sore throat, cough, asthma, allergies and lung cancer. Excessive CO2 in the air leads to headache, fatigue and loss of productivity. The number of non-smokers in Delhi who suffered from lung cancer shot up from 10 percent to 50 percent in a decade, all due to the increased pollutants in the air that people have to breathe.


2. Smog in the air

Smog is exactly what the name might suggest, it is the mixture of smoke and fog. Excessive pollution in air causes smog and Delhi has had its fair share of smog over the years. Delhi observed the great smog in November 2017 which engulfed the whole city in it.


3. Environment change

The environment is constantly degrading with the increasing air pollution. The main effect of Delhi pollution in the environment is the depletion of the ozone layer in the atmosphere due to which the UV rays from the Sun can directly enter the earth. The emission from industries is also a big cause for the global warming that is leading the glaciers to melt at a really fast pace.


4. Economy

Thousands of crores have been spent by the Central Government and the Punjab and Haryana Government to stop the stubble burning and help with better ways to dispose of the waste. Delhi Government has also been getting Green funds to fight the Air Pollution and curb it.


Measures taken Up By the Government to control Delhi Pollution

1988: As advised by Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA), the Court made a ruling that the buses in the city change from using Diesel to CNG.

2010: BS-IV based vehicles were said to be mandatory.

2014: Air Quality Index was launched by the Union Environment Ministry.

2016: Arvind Kejriwal’s Promises

  • ● Delhi Schools to be shut while AQI levels are at hazardous levels.
  • ● Construction and demolition work stopped for 5 days.
  • ● Diesel generators asked to be shut for 10 days
  • ● The Environment department was asked to make an applicationto monitor burning of the leaves in the city.
  • ● Vacuum cleaning of roads will be done
  • ● Water sprinkling will start at areas with high PM 10 levels
  • ● People will be advised to stay at home
  • ● Faster adoption and manufacturing of electric vehicles will be done
  • ● Vehicles that are older than 15 years will be fined
  • ● Smog towers will be installed at hot spots
  • ● By 2021, Delhi metro will be powered 100% by solar energy.

2017: The ‘Odd-Even’ rule was imposed. Parking fees were imposed and increased but due to no proper system, this scheme failed. Crackers were banned.

2018: 9 population hotspots were selected in the city and Anand Vihar was selected as the hot spot for pollution.

2020: A 10 member air pollution team was made. Their work was to examine the complaints from Green Delhi Mobile Application and then work towards solving them.

· · ·

How bad is the infamous Delhi Pollution

The residents of the capital city of India have to bear the brunt of the annual winter pollution. The air quality drops to such a level that the city is compared to a gas chamber! Delhi starts witnessing high levels of air pollution in late October and the contamination worsens until the end of the year. Many parts of the city experience pollution levels as high as 150 times the stipulated levels recommended by the World Health Organisation.


As a result of these events, the pollution levels are lesser in summers as compared to winters, provided the spatial and meteorological remain the same. You can observe a similar effect during winter afternoons. The increase in heat levels down pollution slightly.The early mornings and the nights are the worst. The impact of inversion is visibly evident, which is why the air quality plummets during these hours.


Why does Delhi air quality index deteriorate in winters?

Atmospheric inversion occurs in winters. The normal conditions reverse themselves, and air near the lower atmosphere is cooler and denser. The relatively warmer air of the upper layers, hence, acts as an atmospheric lid. This lid entraps the pollutants within the cold layer and evades their atmospheric dispersion. Therefore, the vertical mixing occurs in the lower layer itself.At constant emission rates and concentration of pollutants, the lesser the temperature, the more is the pollution.


As a result of these events, the pollution levels are lesser in summers as compared to winters, provided the spatial and meteorological remains the same. You can observe a similar effect during winter afternoons. The increase in heat levels down pollution slightly.The early mornings and the nights are the worst. The impact of inversion is visibly evident, which is why the air quality plummets during these hours.


However, one of the worst incidents happened during an international cricket test match between India and Sri Lanka in December 2017. The match was stopped because many Sri Lankan players became sick. Several players experienced breathing problems and vomited. The Indian Medical Association expressed their concern over the unfortunate incident and insisted ICC to adopt a policy on pollution.

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