Residents of Delhi-NCR received a major respite from air pollution in the early days of December. On Thursday, December 5, the sky cleared up with bright sunshine, offering much-needed relief from the toxic air that has gripped the region for weeks.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the Air Quality Index (AQI) at 7 am near India Gate was recorded at 128, which falls under the 'moderate' category of air pollution. This marks a significant improvement from previous days when the AQI had reached hazardous levels.

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Earlier, on Wednesday, a combination of warm sunshine and strong winds brought clear skies, allowing Delhi residents to breathe in cleaner air for the first time in nearly 50 days. The AQI dropped below 200, and the city saw a sharp improvement of nearly 90 points within 24 hours, from an AQI of 268 on Tuesday to 178 on Wednesday. According to the CPCB’s air quality bulletin, this level of air quality is classified as ‘moderate.’

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By 8 pm on Wednesday, only six out of the 38 monitoring stations across Delhi recorded 'poor' air quality, while the rest were categorised as ‘moderate.’ The air quality across all NCR cities also remained below an AQI of 200, marking a significant relief from the previous days.

The respite from pollution is expected to last for the next two to three days. The Early Warning System suggests that Delhi’s AQI will remain in the moderate category on Thursday. However, on Friday and Saturday, it may dip into the ‘poor’ category again, with a possibility of it worsening to the ‘very poor’ category afterwards.

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With the improvement in air quality, the Supreme Court is set to hear the case on the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) restrictions. The court may permit the relaxation of restrictions under GRAP levels 3 and 4. Following the green signal from the Supreme Court, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) is expected to issue a revised order later in the day.


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