Strong surface winds brought temporary relief to Delhi on Wednesday morning as air pollution levels showed a slight improvement, though air quality remained firmly in the ‘very poor’ category. According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board, the air quality index stood at 342 at 8 am.
Despite the marginal improvement, pollution levels had been far worse the previous evening. On Tuesday night, Delhi recorded a 24-hour average AQI of 412, placing it in the ‘severe’ category and marking the fourth severe air day this month.
Forecasts by the Air Quality Early Warning System indicate that the relief is likely to be short-lived. The system has predicted that air quality will remain in the ‘very poor’ category through Wednesday and continue at similar levels until Friday. The outlook for the following six days also suggests persistently poor air quality.
Alongside pollution, fog affected visibility across the city during the early hours. Several areas experienced shallow to moderate fog, with visibility at Palam airport dropping to 100 metres at around 2.30 am before improving to 250 metres by 6.30 am.
Although no flight cancellations were reported at Delhi airport, aviation tracking data showed that more than 150 flights were delayed by 8 am due to reduced visibility.
The India Meteorological Department classifies fog based on visibility levels, defining shallow fog as visibility between 500 and 1,000 metres, moderate fog between 200 and 500 metres, dense fog between 50 and 200 metres, and very dense fog when visibility falls below 50 metres.
The IMD has forecast similar weather conditions in the coming days. Officials said strong surface winds of 15–25 kmph are expected to impact the region on Wednesday, while shallow to moderate fog is likely to persist on Thursday. A yellow alert has been issued for Friday, with moderate to dense fog expected during morning hours.
Temperatures are also expected to drop further over the Christmas weekend, adding to winter discomfort in the Capital.