Delhi world’s most polluted city with 970 AQI, 8 Indian cities in top 10

Among the top 10 most polluted cities in the world currently, 8 are in India with nearly 500 Air Quality Index (AQI), which is considered ‘hazardous’ as per the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. New Delhi, the national capital of India, was the most polluted city in the world on Monday, November 18, with an AQI of 978.

The Stage-IV measures under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) were implemented across Delhi-NCR from 8 am on Monday. The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) is a set of emergency measures implemented based on the severity of air pollution. Stage-IV is the strictest level of emergency measures implemented after the air quality turns severe, posing dangerous health risks to all citizens, and making the situation worse for children, the elderly and chronically ill individuals.

Most polluted cities in India today

Top 10 most polluted cities in the world today

What is the Air Quality Index?

Air pollution is one of the most alarming concerns in the country, which worsens in the winter season as the cold and heavy air traps dust, emissions and smoke. The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a tool to measure air quality and communicate the air quality status to people in understandable terms.

AQI has six different categories ranging from 0-500, depicting the quality of air. While 0-100 is a safe reading, values above 100 are considered unhealthy and anything above 200 is harmful to health. These categories are:

• Good (0-50)

• Satisfactory (51–100)

• Moderate (101–200)

• Poor (201-300)

• Very Poor: (301–400)

• Severe (401–500)

Pollution controlling measures in Delhi-NCR

Stage-III Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) was already in effect in the region under which many activities including earthwork for excavation and filling, brick masonry, water-proofing, road construction, and movement of vehicles carrying construction materials on unpaved roads were already banned to avoid dust pollution.

From Monday 8 am, strict restrictions have been implemented to improve air quality like restriction of truck and light commercial vehicles entry into the area, online classes for students, minimised workplace operations, etc.