IMD update: ‘Very bad’ air quality and thick fog cause Delhi-NCR to shiver

The national capital awoke to an even colder morning on Monday, surrounded by thick fog, as the cold wave continued to tighten its hold across North India.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reports that the temperature in Delhi on Monday morning was 9.4 degrees Celsius.

In several areas of Delhi, visibility plummeted to 125 meters, while the majority of the National Capital Region (NCR) also had diminished visibility.

The lowest recorded temperature on Sunday was 9.1 degrees Celsius.

Many people sought safety in night shelters located across the nation’s capital due to the bitter weather.

In other places, people gathered around fires in the Lodhi Road vicinity in search of solace.

Images taken near AIIMS from Lodhi Road, Munirka, RK Puram, and Ring Road showed a dense fog hovering over the area, with very few cars and people using the roads.

Furthermore, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) said that Delhi’s air quality on Monday was still classified as “very poor,” with the Air Quality Index (AQI) around 400. Both Ghaziabad and Noida’s AQIs fall into the “extremely poor” range.

A score of 0–50 is regarded as acceptable, 51–100 as satisfactory, 101–200 as moderate, 201–300 as bad, 301–400 as extremely poor, 401–450 as severe, and over 450 as severe–plus.

The Delhi-National Capital Region has prohibited any non-essential building activities due to the current circumstances.