The air quality in Delhi plunged to the ‘very poor’ and ‘severe’ categories on Diwali, with 34 out of the city’s 38 monitoring stations recording pollution levels in the ‘red zone’ on Monday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The national capital’s 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI), reported at 4 pm daily, stood at 345, up from 326 on Sunday, as per CPCB data. As many as four monitoring stations recorded AQI levels above 400, placing them in the ‘severe’ category, according to the CPCB’s SAMEER app. Wazirpur recorded the worst air quality at 423; Dwarka 417; Ashok Vihar 404; Wazirpur 423; and Anand Vihar 404.

Around 30 other stations reported ‘very poor’ air quality, with AQI readings above 300.

By Monday afternoon, 31 stations recorded “very poor” air quali

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