Air quality remains poor in Delhi-NCR; firecracker companies uncertain ahead of festive season

The pollution levels in the national capital remains poor as of Sunday.

The air quality index (AQI) stood at 208 as of 10 am on Sunday, which falls under the poor category. 

Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) confirmed the report. 

AQI in Delhi stood at 300 on Saturday. 

With the festive season coming, many Firework companies are worried as the Supreme Court had last year banned the sale and purchase of firecrackers in the national capital. 

Director of Sivakasi's Sony Firework, Ganeshan says that the livelihood of 8-10 lakh people depends on the industry. 

Ganesan further said that due to the apex court's decision to ban the sale and purchase of firecrackers, there is a lot of uncertainty.

"Huge stock is lying unsold after last year's SC judgement," Ganeshan added. 

On the other hand, farmers in Punjab are protesting against the government's decision to burn stubble as it causes pollution in the national capital.

Farmers in Punjab claim that the government is not waiving their loans and they are not provided with the machinery for stubble burning. 

Farmers in Punjab have been committing suicide due to the issue. 

The NASA, on its official website, stated that burning crop residue in Punjab and Haryana has increased significantly over the past 10 days in and near Amritsar, Ambala, Karnal, Sirsa and Hisar.

Meanwhile, air quality in the national capital remains poor. According to the CPCB website, Anand Vihar recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 261, DTU registered AQI of 207, ITO recorded AQI of 204 while Jahangirpuri recorded an AQI of 300, just one point below the very poor level.

An AQI between 0-50 is considered 'good', 51-100 'satisfactory', 101-200 'moderate', 201-300 'poor', 301-400 'very poor', and 401-500 'severe'.

The PM10 level (presence of particles with diameter less than 10 micrometres) in Delhi stood at 183 and the PM2.5 level was recorded at 93, according to the data.

Authorities have predicted further deterioration of air quality in the coming days.

A slew of measures are being taken by the CPCB to fight pollution during the upcoming winter season, when the air quality in Delhi is generally the worst.

(With Agency Inputs)