- Super El Niño to reduce rain, worsen Delhi's air quality.
- Stubble burning in northern states adds to pollution woes.
- Weaker western disturbances mean slower winds, milder winter.
Delhi Air Quality: The air quality of Delhi and nearby states, including Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, is likely to worsen in the coming weeks. As per the experts, multiple factors are expected to contribute to the situation, such as a fall in rain activities, Super El Niño, and a surge in the stubble-burning cases. The pollutants accumulated in the air usually get washed away in rain, but dry conditions is likely in the coming days due to the Super El Niño.
What Experts Said?
Gufran Beig, founder of the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) and professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), stated that the Super El Niño is a "unique event" of this century. Apart from this, Professor Gufran Beig asserted that the Pacific Ocean has witnessed a surge in temperature recently, adding that it will reduce the western disturbances.
"The Pacific Ocean's temperature has already risen by more than 3 degrees Celsius. This will reduce western disturbances. Increased western disturbances cause rain in Delhi and temporarily clear pollutants, but a decrease in western disturbances will lead to greater pollution accumulation," Professor Beig stated.
'Wind Speed To Slow Down'
He further stated that temperatures are unlikely to drop significantly during the winters due to a reduced western disturbance. "The wind speed is likely to slow down due to the weakening of the Western Disturbance, which will allow pollutants to accumulate and the air to become stagnant," Beig added.
Stubble Burning To Affect Air Quality
Along with the lowered rain activities, the stubble burning across the northern states such as Punjab and Haryana is also likely to affect the air quality, the experts stated. A total of 47 cases of stubble burning have already been reported in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh between September 15 and 23.