Capital’s air quality hovers close to 'severe' mark; 18 stations log above-400 AQI
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi’s air quality hovered close to the 'severe' category on Thursday as the average AQI was recorded at 391, with more than 15 monitoring stations logging readings above the 400-mark, according to the CPCB.
The 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) settled at 391 -- in the 'very poor' category for the seventh consecutive day.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the average AQI stood at 392 on Wednesday, 374 on Tuesday, and 351 on Monday.
Delhi’s air quality is likely to deteriorate further, slipping into the 'severe' category in the coming days, and will remain in the 'very poor' to 'severe' range for the next six days, according to the Ministry of Earth Sciences’ Air Quality Early Warning System.
The CPCB's Sameer app -- which displays AQI readings from all monitoring stations across Delhi -- showed that out of 38 operational stations, 18 logged AQIs in the 'severe' category. These include Chandni Chowk, DTU, Bawana, Anand Vihar, Mundka, Narela and Wazirpur stations where above-400 AQI levels were recorded.
As per CPCB standards, an AQI between 0–50 is 'good', 51–100 'satisfactory', 101–200 'moderate', 201–300 'poor', 301–400 'very poor' and 401–500 'severe'.
Meanwhile, the Decision Support System of the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, estimated that vehicular emissions contributed 17.3 per cent to Delhi’s pollution on Thursday, while stubble burning accounted for 2.8 per cent.
For Friday, these parameters are projected to comprise 16.2 per cent and 1.8 per cent of the capital's pollutants, respectively.
Satellite imagery detected 16 farm fires in Punjab, 11 in Haryana and 115 in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the minimum temperature was recorded at 11.4 degrees Celsius, 0.9 degrees below normal, while the maximum settled at 28.2 degree celsius, 0.4 degrees above normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
For Friday, the IMD has forecast moderate fog, with the maximum and minimum temperatures expected to hover around 27 and 12 degrees Celsius, respectively.
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Indian visa application centre suspended indefinitely in Bangladesh's Chattogram
Dhaka (PTI): India on Sunday suspended visa operations at its mission in Bangladeshi port city of Chattogram until further notice, according to media reports.
The move comes in the wake of a fresh wave of unrest witnessed in the country following the death of prominent youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi.
His death triggered attacks and vandalism across Bangladesh, including stone-hurling at the Assistant Indian High Commissioner's residence in Chattogram on Thursday.
Hadi, a prominent leader of the student-led protests last year that led to the ouster of the prime minister Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government, was a candidate for the scheduled February 12 general elections.
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He was shot in the head on December 12 by masked gunmen at an election campaign in central Dhaka’s Bijoynagar area and died while undergoing treatment in Singapore on December 18.
“Due to the recent security incident at Assistant High Commission of India (AHCI) Chittagong, Indian visa operations at IVAC Chittagong (Chattogram) will remain suspended from 21/12/2025 until further notice,” the Indian Visa Application Centre (IVAC) said in a brief statement.
The announcement for reopening the visa centre will be made after reviewing the situation, the statement added. The decision came into effect on Sunday.
There are five IVAC facilities across Bangladesh at Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Chattogram and Sylhet. An IVAC official told PTI that the other four offices have remained operational as of Sunday.
India on Thursday resumed operations at its visa application centre in Dhaka, a day after closing it over escalated security concerns, but closed for a brief period two other identical facilities in Rajshahi and Khulna as anti-India protestors tried to march towards the Indian missions there.
On Saturday, security was strengthened at the Indian Assistant High Commission office and the visa application centre in Bangladesh's Sylhet city.
The enhanced security measures were put in place to ensure that “no third party can exploit the situation,” Additional Deputy Commissioner (Media) of the Sylhet Metropolitan Police Saiful Islam was quoted as saying by The Dhaka Tribune newspaper on Saturday.
Hadi, 32, was laid to rest on Saturday amid extra-tight security beside the grave of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam near the Dhaka University mosque.
Tens of thousands of people attended the funeral prayers, and ahead of the ritual, chanted anti-India slogans like “Delhi or Dhaka - Dhaka, Dhaka” and “brother Hadi’s blood will not be allowed to go in vain.”
Earlier on December 17, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) summoned Bangladesh envoy Riaz Hamidullah and conveyed its strong concern over certain extremist elements announcing plans to create a security situation around the Indian mission in Dhaka.
“We expect the interim government to ensure the safety of Missions and Posts in Bangladesh in keeping with its diplomatic obligations,” it said.
The envoy was apprised of India's strong concerns about the deteriorating security environment in Bangladesh, it added.
