Delhi breathes easier on Diwali as air quality improves to 'poor', pollution levels fall

New Delhi: After several days of suffering from ‘severe’ and ‘very poor’ air quality, the national capital on Wednesday surprisingly breathed better air in Diwali as its pollution level went down, improving the quality to ‘poor’. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) the overall Air Quality Index for the Delhi-NCR (National Capital Region) region at 5 pm was 283 which falls in ‘poor’ category. The Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi on Tuesday at 2 pm was 360, improving from the 12 noon 385, considered “very poor”, and 403 or “severe” at 9 am. [caption id=“attachment_5499271” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of pollution in Delhi. AP[/caption] The PM2.5 and PM10, or particles with diameter less than 2.5 and 10mm, in Delhi-NCR was 145 and 277. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the minimum temperature settled at 12.5 degree Celsius, one notch below the season’s average, while the maximum temperature was 27.8 degree Celsius, a notch below the season’s average. Tuesday’s maximum temperature settled at 28 degrees Celsius, one notch below the season’s average, and the minimum was 15.3 degrees Celsius, one notch above the season’s average.