Delhi was covered in a thick layer of toxic haze on Wednesday morning as people continued to burst firecrackers beyond the Supreme Court’s two-hour limit. The Air Quality Index (AQI) remained in the “very poor” category, touching 345 at 7 AM today, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
As many as 34 out of the 38 monitoring stations recorded air quality in the ‘red zone’, indicating “very poor” to “severe” pollution levels. Punjab Bagh recorded the worst readings, with AQI values of 427, as per the latest CPCB readings.
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.
Visuals from ITO, where the AQI stood at 362 this morning, showed a thick layer of smog hovering over the area, reducing the visibility.
#WATCH | Visuals from the ITO as GRAP-2 invoked in Delhi.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) in the region was recorded at 361, in the ‘Very Poor’ category, this morning pic.twitter.com/4KEqIV2wRc
— ANI (@ANI) October 22, 2025
Air Pollution Hits 4-Year High On Diwali
Delhi witnessed its most severe Diwali air pollution in four years, as hazardous PM2.5 levels surged to an alarming 675 micrograms per cubic metre late into the night, a record not reached since 2021.
The city’s 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) by 4 pm on Monday stood at 345, squarely in the “very poor” category.
The 24-hour AQI on Diwali this year was higher than last year’s 330, 2023’s 218, and 2022’s 312, though still short of 2021’s 382. This upward spike signals a return to the dangerous pollution levels seen in the early 2020s, sparking worries among public health and environmental experts.
According to the hourly bulletin, Delhi’s AQI remained consistently high through the night, registering 344 at 10 pm, 347 at 11 pm, 349 at midnight, and 348 at 1 am. The index stayed elevated into Tuesday morning, climbing from 346 at 5 am to 359 by 10 am, and holding steady through 11 am and noon.
PM2.5 levels hit their worst in four years, peaking at 675 micrograms per cubic metre late on Diwali night.
Adding to the concern, several climate experts alleged on Tuesday that crucial pollution data from the peak late-night hours had disappeared. In response, Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa insisted that all relevant data remained available, with the department’s website and apps operating without interruption, news agency PTI reported.
