Dense fog keeps visibility low in Delhi, air quality 'very poor'
New Delhi (PTI): Early morning visibility was low in parts of the national capital on Friday due to a thick layer of smog and haze, with mercury levels settling at 9 degree Celsius.
Delhi's air remained in the 'very poor' category, with the 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) settling at 382, edging closer to the 'severe' category.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board's SAMEER app, out of 40 air quality monitoring stations across the city, 14 recorded severe air quality while 26 were in the very poor category. Vivek Vihar recorded the worst air quality with an AQI of 434, the data showed.
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As per the Central Pollution Control Board's classification, an 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.
The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi has forecast that air quality is likely to remain in the 'very poor' category till Saturday and deteriorate to 'severe' on Sunday.
Several parts of the national capital were seen enveloped in dense smog during the early morning hours, leading to reduced visibility.
According to the India Meteorological Department, the minimum temperature settled at 9 degrees Celsius, while relative humidity stood at 100 per cent.
The maximum temperature is expected to hover around 21 degrees Celsius, with dense fog likely to persist through the day.
Meanwhile, the ban on the entry of non-Delhi private vehicles below BS-VI emission standards and enforcement of the 'No PUC, No Fuel' rule came into force in the national capital on Thursday as authorities stepped up measures to tackle worsening air pollution.
Fuel pumps are not dispensing fuel to vehicles without valid Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates, with enforcement being carried out using automatic number plate reader cameras, voice alerts at fuel stations and police support.
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Tipra Motha youth wing stages protest near Bangladesh Assistant High Commission
Agartala (PTI): Tipra Motha Party's youth wing on Friday staged a demonstration near the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission here to protest "anti-India campaign" and remarks made by a leader of the neighbouring country about the Northeast.
Security has been beefed up near the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in the wake of the protest staged by the Youth Tripra Federation (YTF).
"We want to remind anti-India forces in Bangladesh that it was India that liberated Bangladesh from the oppression of Pakistan Army... It took only 13 days to turn East Pakistan into a sovereign country," YTF president Suraj Debbarma told reporters.
The agitators also raised slogans against the present regime in Bangladesh.
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Tipra Motha supremo Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma, in an X post, said, "The only political party in Northeast to publicly protest outside the Bangladesh (Assistant) High Commission after statements were made against our Northeast is Tipra Motha and YTF. Wake up political rivals our real fight should be against the new mini Pakistan (Bangladesh), not each other."
During a rally in protest against the attack on prominent July Uprising leader Sharif Osman Hadi, who later succumbed to gunshot wounds, National Citizen Party (NCP) leader Hasnat Abdullah had threatened to split the seven sisters of the Northeast from India and provide shelter to separatist leaders of the region.
West Tripura Superintendent of Police (SP) Namit Pathak said that Tripura State Rifles (TSR) and CRPF personnel have been deployed to provide security to Bangladesh Assistant High Commission.
"Adequate security arrangements have been made to handle the situation," he said.
The protest brought back memories of last year, when hundreds of agitators had barged into the assistant high commission and the Centre had to tender an apology for the security breach.
Tension gripped Bangladesh on Friday after the death of Hadi triggered protests and violence in various parts of the country.
Hadi, a candidate in the scheduled February 12 general elections, died while undergoing treatment at a Singapore hospital after fighting for his life for six days. He was shot in the head last week by masked gunmen as he initiated his election campaign at central Dhaka's Bijoynagar area.
Protesters on Thursday took to the streets and attacked offices of newspapers and vandalised 32 Dhanmandi, the home of Bangladesh's founding father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Protesters also hurled bricks and stones at the residence of the Indian Assistant High Commissioner in Chattogram, at 1.30 am, but failed to cause any damage.
