At least 180 flights were delayed on Wednesday as Delhi was shrouded in light to moderate fog, the air quality deteriorated to the “very poor” category and the minimum temperature settled at 8.2 degrees Celsius, 0.2 degrees below normal. At 9 am the visibility dropped to 600 meters at Palam and 450 meters at Safdarjung. Clear skies and steady surface winds of 10-20 km/h were expected for the rest of the day.
The minimum temperature may increase by a few degrees in the next two days. (HT Photo)An air quality index (AQI) of 327 (very poor) was recorded against the 24-hour average of 272 (poor) at 4 pm on Tuesday. The Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) for Delhi said the AQI may improve to “poor” zone after Wednesday, thanks to surface winds, and to “moderate” category on Thursday and Friday. “The outlook for the next six days is that air quality may be in the moderate to poor category,” the AQEWS bulletin said
The minimum temperature may rise by a few degrees over the next two days, as a fresh western depression is expected to affect the region from Thursday night. Sustained surface winds of 15-25 kmph were forecast for the next three days, with a chance of shallow fog early in the morning.
