Ashhar Alam | New Delhi

Air quality in the national capital continued to hover in the poor category on Saturday morning, with Delhi’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) measured at 271 around 7 am, data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) showed.

Pollution levels varied sharply across the city, with several locations slipping into the very poor bracket. Areas such as Mundka and Wazirpur recorded AQI readings of 331 each, while Dwarka Sector 8 stood at 329. Okhla Phase-2 logged 323, RK Puram 322, Punjabi Bagh 318 and Rohini 312. Ashok Vihar reported an AQI of 309, indicating deteriorating air quality in parts of north and west Delhi.

Visuals from North West Delhi

Other key monitoring stations also remained in the poor range, with Chandni Chowk at 285, ITO at 279, Bawana at 271 and Burari at 246. Relatively lower readings were seen in the city’s outskirts, with Narela at 232 and Alipur at 227, according to CPCB figures.

Under the AQI scale, values between 201 and 300 are classified as poor, while readings above 300 fall into the very poor category, posing increased health risks, especially for vulnerable groups.

Weather conditions across north and central India added to the morning disruptions, as dense fog affected operations at several airports. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported fog of varying intensity between 6 am and 6.30 am IST.

Very dense fog, with visibility dropping below 50 metres, was observed at Ambala in Haryana and at Agra, Bareilly, Saifai and Hindon in Uttar Pradesh. Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh also reported zero visibility during the period.

Dense fog, where visibility ranged between 50 and 200 metres, was recorded at Varanasi and Lucknow, both at 50 metres, while Prayagraj reported visibility of around 100 metres. Moderate fog conditions prevailed at Jorhat in Assam, with visibility at 200 metres, and at Bagdogra in West Bengal, where it stood at 400 metres.

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Several other airports experienced shallow fog, with visibility between 500 and 1,000 metres. Adampur in Punjab recorded 500 metres, Bathinda 600 metres, while Halwara in Punjab and Gaya in Bihar reported visibility of about 800 metres.

Authorities continue to monitor both air quality and weather conditions as winter-related pollution and fog persist across large parts of the region.