As the monsoon season comes to a close, pollution levels in the city have begun to rise again. The average Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital has reached 166 over the past 24 hours, indicating that the air quality is quite poor. Some of the most polluted areas in Delhi include Anand Vihar, which recorded an AQI of 231, Mundka with an AQI of 273, Loni at 201, and the Delhi Institute of Tool Engineering with an AQI of 243, all of which fall within the unhealthy to hazardous range. Furthermore, the PM2.5 concentration in the city is 5.5 times higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended limit for 24-hour air quality.
Pollution has also surged in surrounding regions, with Ghaziabad reporting an AQI of 171, Meerut at 184, and Noida also at 184.
On October 3, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Daljit Singh Cheema urged the Supreme Court to take action against the governments of Punjab and Haryana following the court’s rebuke of both states regarding air pollution. Cheema highlighted that the Supreme Court has consistently worked to address the pollution issues in Delhi and its neighboring areas, yet the situation worsens annually. He called for the states to provide adequate support to farmers instead of continuously blaming them.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court expressed dissatisfaction with the Commission for Air Quality Management’s (CAQM) effectiveness in implementing its directives on air pollution. The court noted that there has been no compliance effort, no prosecutions initiated, and that the most recent meeting took place on August 29. The Supreme Court has instructed Punjab and Haryana to abide by CAQM directives and to submit an affidavit within a week. The case is set for hearing on October 16.