Air quality in Delhi worsens to "severe" category for the first time this year

On Saturday, the air quality in some areas of Delhi fell into the "severe" category when an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 457 was recorded in the Anand Vihar area of the national capital whereas Noida recorded 411. 

According to data from the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), Delhi's overall air quality was 381 in "very poor" category in the afternoon.

• The-day-after-Diwali AQI recorded at 303 was however the best recorded in the national capital in the past seven years including the two pandemic years (2020 and 2021).

The "severe" category is reported to affect healthy people and seriously impact those with existing diseases.

An AQI between zero to 50 is considered "good", 51 to 100 "satisfactory", 101 to 200 "moderate", 201 to 300 "poor", 301 to 400 "very poor" and 401 to 500 "severe".