No respite for Delhi as farm smoke in the air

The Capital once again struggled to shrug off the grey sheet that has shrouded it for five days, with waves of smoke from Punjab's burning paddy fields pushing Delhi's air quality index (AQI) deeper into the "severe" zone on Thursday.

- Jasjeev Gandhiok

Delhi has been shackled in a pollution hot box since Diwali, with farm fire smoke feeding the city's bad air crisis, and still winds doing little to free the air of pollutants.

This run was extended on Thursday, when Delhi clocked an AQI of 419 at 4pm, a reading firmly in the hazardous "severe" zone, according to the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) official bulletin. By 10pm, this number surged to 440.

Delhi's AQI was severe on Wednesday too, with a reading of 401 according to CPCB's initial bulletin. But the agency later revised this number to 398 (very poor), citing a faulty reading. However, a difference of three AQI points is no more than a technicality. The air is just as filthy in both cases, with devastating long-term health impacts for people across ages.

Thursday's pollution was driven largely by farm fire smoke, with authorities in Punjab failing to get a grip on the uncontrolled burning of paddy fields as the rabi sowing season nears.