Vehicles ply on the road as the air quality deteriorates due to dust pollution, in New Delhi on Tuesday morning, May 16, 2023. Photo Credit: PTI
Strong winds lashed Delhi on Tuesday morning, raising dust and affecting the air quality, as well as reducing visibility to 1,000 metres, the India Meteorological Department said.
Satellite images released by the Meteorological Office show a thick layer of dust over large parts of northwest India.
Meteorologists have attributed the dusty conditions in northwest India over the last five days to a combination of intense heat, absence of rainfall and dry soil due to strong winds that persisted since midnight.
Strong dusty winds lashed Delhi in the early hours. The wind speed reduced from 30-35 kmph to 12 kmph by 9 am and will further come down during the day, causing dust to settle down. said the head of IMD’s regional forecasting centre.
IMD senior scientist RK Jenamani said the visibility level at the Palam observatory, located near the Indira Gandhi International Airport, was 1,100 meters at 9 am as compared to 4,000 meters at 9 am on Monday.
“The dust concentration has increased manifold. The PM10 concentration increased from 140 microgram per cubic meter at 4 am to 775 microgram per cubic meter at 8 am. This is mainly due to the strong winds prevailing in the area. Dust Will go down soon.” VK Soni, head of IMD’s Environment Monitoring and Research Centre, said.
Dust particles, especially fine particulate matter (PM2.5), can penetrate deep into the respiratory tract when inhaled. They can irritate the lungs, trigger respiratory problems and aggravate existing conditions such as asthma, bronchitis and allergies.
The city recorded a minimum temperature of 27.4 degrees Celsius, a notch above normal. The maximum temperature is likely to be around 40 degree Celsius.
In the last four days, the maximum temperature in Delhi has soared above the 40 degree Celsius mark, intensifying the heat wave conditions.
The IMD said the sky would be partly cloudy and light rain could bring minor respite till evening. The maximum temperature is expected to rise up to 44 degree Celsius by Sunday.