Drizzle in parts of Delhi-NCR
New Delhi: A day after the mercury climbed to 28.7°C, parts of Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) witnessed light rain on Monday. The meteorological department has predicted that some parts of the capital may also witness hailstorms in the next two days. However, the pollution level remained 'severe'. Heavier showers are likely on Tuesday, after which day temperatures may fall to around 18 degrees C. An intense western disturbance along with induced cyclonic circulation is likely to continue to affect Western Himalayan region mainly during next three days and plains of northwest India from Monday," an IMD release stated. Sunday was the warmest January day in the city since 29 degrees Celsius was recorded on January 27, 2007.
Meanwhile, Millions gasp for clean air again as the overall air quality in the national capital dipped into the 'severe' category on Monday. According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 404 on Monday morning. It is predicted that the AQI would fluctuate between the 'severe' and 'very poor' range throughout the day. Since the surface winds are calm and pre-rain conditions introduced a huge amount of moisture in the air, dispersion of prominent pollutants is low, SAFAR said. Active western disturbances are likely to impact Delhi's air quality by introducing the moisture and making the air heavy.
It is predicted that there will be a fall and temperature, which along with moderate fog, would likely bring down the inversion layer to keep both gaseous and particulate pollutants near the surface. SAFAR also mentioned that the air quality may recover significantly by Wednesday if a sufficient amount of rain occurs. On Monday morning, the major pollutants PM 2.5 (fine particulate matter in the air with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometre) and PM10 (fine particulate matter in the air with a diameter of fewer than 10 micrometre) were recorded in the 'poor' and 'very poor' categories respectively at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport.
The overall PM2.5 level in Delhi was recorded at 254 in the 'severe' category while the PM10 level was recorded at 396 under "very poor" category on Monday.
As many as 11 trains were delayed in Delhi due to foggy weather and low visibility.
