Pollution levels skyrocketed by the hour in Delhi on Sunday, turning the air quality hazardous, which agencies consider unfit for inhalation even by healthier people.
The national capital woke up on Tuesday morning to 'severe' air quality under a blanket of thick haze, as pollution levels breached the permissible standards by multiple times.
Pollution levels were inching towards 'severe plus emergency' category due to a change in wind direction and rampant stubble burning in neighbouring states
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The PM2.5 level (presence in the air of particles with a diametre of less than 2.5 micrometres) touched a new high at 158 as authorities predicted further deterioration of air quality in the coming days.
The NGT directed the Delhi govt not to implement the scheme unless it established that it was not counter-productive.
The official data maintained by the Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research put the condition at severely polluted. The Particulate Matter 2.5 level was recorded at 146 while the PM 10 was at 233 in New Delhi.
Delhi woke up to the season's worst air quality as smoke from Diwali fireworks, coupled with moisture and nearly stagnant wind movement, shrouded the city in a thick cover of smog with respirable pollutants reaching perilous levels.
Authorities alerted people to avoid staying outdoors and L-G ordered to halt all civil construction activities across the city till Sunday.
In a gross violation of a Supreme Court order, people in several cities burst firecrackers until at least midnight, two hours after the 10 pm deadline. Loud bangs rent the air in New Delhi.
In a statement, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said the air pollution had reached the severe level and asked people to follow the dos and don'ts as mentioned in the advisory.
'If 20,000 people in the stands did not have problem and the Indian team did not face any issue, I wonder why Sri Lankan team made a big fuss. I will need to talk to the secretary and ask him to write to the Sri Lanka Cricket'
India had 14 out of the world's 20 most polluted cities, the World Health Organization reveals.
Despite a 187 km, seven-line metro network carrying 2.4 million commuters every day, private vehicles rose 92% over the last 15 years
According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research, the overall air quality of the national capital docked at 376 at 8:30 am on Tuesday.
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The air quality in Delhi remained poor Sunday with drop in wind speed even as authorities predicted further fall in air quality index of the national capital in the coming days.
New Delhi's overall air quality index read 456 at 4 pm, up from 425 at 4 pm on Tuesday.
Once called India's garden city, this upper middle-class residential area in Bangalore has India's most toxic air, says Devanik Saha, IndiaSpend.com.
The AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships is taking place in an indoor stadium from Thursday through to November 24 but teams are complaining about a toxic smog hanging over the city, caused by seasonal burning of crop stubble and emissions from vehicles and industry.
Rediff Labs has analysed Delhi region's air quality through its product real-time air quality analyser
The International Cricket Council is likely to incorporate air pollution in its 'Playing Conditions' clause, having taken a serious note of the plight of Sri Lankan cricketers during the recently-concluded Test match against India in New Delhi.
The problem is so severe that multiple agencies have issued several precautionary measures.
The national capital stood sixth in terms of air pollution in January, with cities like Muzzaffarpur in Bihar and Varanasi showing worse air qualities.
The national capital is facing the worst smog in 17 years, the Centre for Science and Environment had said on Thursday.
WHO estimates 1.34 million people died in 2008 from breathing in the tiny particles present in polluted outdoor air.
Beijing's sky was gloomy and the ground largely deserted.
An Air France flight from Mauritius to Paris was forced to make an emergency landing in Kenya early on Sunday after a suspicious package was found on board, Kenyan police said.
The overall Air Quality Index was recorded at 231 on Sunday which falls in 'poor' category.
Other Graded Response Action Plan measures like ban on diesel generators, hot mix plants, stone crushers and brick kilns, however, continue to remain in place.
Experts are unanimously endorsing that a reduction in the volume of cars is bringing down levels of gaseous pollutants in New Delhi.
As pollution reaching alarming levels in Delhi, Veer Arjun Singh guides you how to protect yourself.
The air quality in Delhi is turning worse, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said.
The green body's report said three of the world's largest nitrogen oxide air pollution emission hotspots that contribute to formation of PM2.5 and ozone are in India with one in the Delhi-NCR.
Here's what the national capital needs to do to ensure the residents stop breathing toxic fumes.
The minister said the government will soon come out with air pollution data of major cities.
As visibility remained poor and the city choked due to a haze, the Centre for Science and Environment asked the Delhi govt to roll out stringent plans for controlling winter pollution.
The NGT has asked the Centre to respond to the plea of an environment enthusiast alleging that large-scale burning of municipal solid waste in Agra was turning the Taj Mahal yellow.
Over 17,000 schools running under the three municipal corporations of Delhi were closed on Saturday due to heavy smog that has already caused a spike in cases of asthma, allergy and breathlessness
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