Delhi schools shut for primary classes as air quality worsens

The Delhi government has decided to shut schools for primary classes from tomorrow as air quality in the national capital continued to stay in the ‘severe’ category on Friday morning which is hazardous to health.

The announcement to shut primary schools was made by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday. Adjoining Noida has already shut schools for children till Class 8 due to the toxic air.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights chairperson Priyank Kanoongo had recommended that schools in the capital be shut down till air quality improves. She wrote to Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar on the issue and asked for an action taken report within 24 hours.

The SAFAR (System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research) Friday reveals that the stubble-burning contributed 34 per cent in Delhi’s PM 2.5 pollution.

The overall Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital rose to 472 on Friday from 450 on Thursday.

Noida, which is part of the national capital region, recorded an AQI of 562, and continued to remain in the ‘severe’ category, while Gurugram’s AQI stood at 539 and continued to remain in the ‘severe’, as per data released by SAFAR (System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and  Research) India.

An Air Quality Index from 0 to 100 is considered as good, while from 100 to 200 it is moderate, from 200 to 300 it is poor, and from 300 to 400 it is said to be very poor and from 400 too 500 or above it is considered as severe.

The forecast predicts that the condition of air quality in Delhi and nearby regions will continue to deteriorate further and expects improvement from November 5 when higher surface wind speed is likely to disperse pollutants.