Air quality worsens in Delhi, AQI settles in ‘severe’ zone

Delhi grappled with toxic fumes on Sunday (December 14, 2025) as the air quality entered the ‘severe’ category at 459, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.

A thick layer of smog covered the city at night, leaving people gasping for breath.

According to the CPCB, an Air Quality Index (AQI) between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’ and 401 to 500 ‘severe’.

Weather-wise, the minimum temperature is at 8.2 degrees Celsius, 0.4 degrees lower than the seasonal average, and the maximum temperature is likely to hover around 24 degrees Celsius.

The relative humidity was 100 percent at 8.30 am, the IMD said.

In view of the deteriorating air quality in the national capital, the Delhi Directorate of Education on Saturday directed all schools to conduct classes for students up to Class IX and XI in a hybrid mode. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has invoked Phase-IV actions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) with immediate effect to check further deterioration of air pollution in Delhi-NCR.