NEW DELHI: Delhi recorded above-normal maximum and minimum temperatures on Tuesday, while the average Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 179 in the ‘Moderate’ category.One monitoring station recorded ‘Very Poor’ air quality with an AQI above 300m, news agency PTI reported.Of the 44 air quality monitoring stations across the city, Dwarka Sector 8 recorded an AQI of 305, falling in the ‘Very Poor’ category.11 stations recorded ‘Poor’ air quality, with Mundka and Narela recording the highest AQIs at 266 and 241, respectively. The remaining 32 stations recorded ‘Moderate’ air quality.The Dwarka Sector 8 station had last recorded ‘Very Poor’ air quality on May 25, when its AQI stood at 322.According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), an AQI of 0-50 is considered ‘Good’, 51-100 ‘Satisfactory’, 101-200 ‘Moderate’, 201-300 ‘Poor’, 301-400 ‘Very Poor’ and 401-500 ‘Severe’, PTI reported.According to the Air Quality Early Warning System, Delhi’s air quality is likely to remain in the ‘Moderate’ category till October 9. It may either dip to ‘Poor’ or remain ‘Moderate’ over the following six days.Most weather stations across Delhi recorded above-normal maximum temperatures on Tuesday.Safdarjung recorded the highest maximum temperature at 36.8 degrees Celsius, 2.6 degrees above normal, followed by Lodi Road and Ridge at 35.8 degrees Celsius each, with departures of 2.8 and 1.3 degrees, respectively.Ayanagar recorded 35.6 degrees Celsius, 1.1 degrees above normal, while Palam recorded 34 degrees Celsius, 0.4 degrees below normal.Safdarjung recorded a minimum temperature of 25.2 degrees Celsius, 2.9 degrees above normal, followed by Lodi Road at 24.1 degrees Celsius, 3.1 degrees above normal, PTI reported.Palam and Ayanagar recorded 23.6 degrees Celsius each, with departures of 1.3 and 1.6 degrees, respectively. Ridge recorded the lowest minimum temperature at 21.5 degrees Celsius, one degree below normal.No rainfall was recorded at the weather stations during the day.For Wednesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast a minimum temperature of 22 degrees Celsius and a maximum of 34 degrees Celsius, with partly cloudy skies.(With agency inputs)
