Delhi’s Air Quality Nears ‘Severe’ Zone as AQI Touches 400 Across the City

Published on: 09 Nov 2025 at 03:06 PM

Published by: Fact News

Fact News Service

Chandigarh, November 9: Delhi woke up to a serious air crisis, with the city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) hovering around 390 in the early hours. In fact, more than half of the monitoring stations — over 20 out of 39 — reported AQI values of 400 or above, putting them in the “severe” pollution category.
Some of the worst-affected areas included Alipur (around 415), ITO (around 420), Nehru Nagar (426), Wazirpur (435) and Burari (430).

The main culprit remains the fine particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) that’s been accumulating due to a combination of factors: stubble-burning in surrounding states, calm winds and low dispersion, traffic and local emissions, and the onset of cooler winter conditions causing pollutants to linger.
In the wider NCR region, places like Noida and Ghaziabad also recorded very poor AQIs: Noida around 354, Greater Noida 336 and Ghaziabad 339.

Officials with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee say that while this November is showing better numbers compared to the same period last year in some respects, the risk of moving into even stricter pollution-control measures (Stage-III of the Graded Response Action Plan or GRAP) remains high.

Authorities have urged residents to limit outdoor exposure and continue following pollution-mitigation guidelines. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) is monitoring the situation closely and may enforce stricter curbs under Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) if conditions fail to improve. Meteorologists warn that stagnant weather patterns could keep pollution levels elevated over the next few days, offering little respite for Delhi’s 30 million residents breathing some of the dirtiest air in the world.

What this means for residents

Outdoor air is deeply unhealthy; vulnerable groups (children, elderly, those with respiratory issues) are at elevated risk.

The haze and low visibility are notable; many parts of the city are shrouded in grey smog, making even day-to-day breathing more difficult.

With the wind speeds low and the weather cooler, the next few days are likely to see persistence of these poor conditions unless dispersion picks up. The early-warning systems suggest the situation remains “very poor” for the immediate term.