On Friday, Delhi’s air quality dipped to emergency levels. (PTI)

Delhi Air Emergency: The India Meteorological Department has some good news for people of the national capital, which has been covered with a thick layer of smog, making the city a gas chamber where breathing has become almost impossible. Delhi’s air quality has entered the ‘severe’ category with AQI (Air Quality Index) ranging from 380 to 450.

However, the emergency-like situation is predicted to change by next week. IMD officer KBV Singh today said that wind speed is expected to increase from Saturday and rainfall may also occur after November 6, a condition that will clear the smog. “Presently, there is negligible wind in Delhi. There is a possibility of an increase in wind speed from today. Wind direction will change after Nov 6 and rainfall may also occur. There will be a relief once it happens,” Singh said.

On Friday, Delhi’s air quality dipped to emergency levels. Following this, the Supreme Court-mandated pollution control body EPCA —Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority — asked the agencies to take stringent action to stop stubble-burning in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana. Stubble-burning has been one of the major contributors to pollution in Delhi.

The EPCA on Friday declared a public health emergency in the national capital and banned construction activities till November 5. The authority also banned bursting of crackers during the winter season. Today, Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala said that there has been a fall in stubble burning by 34 per cent in the state and there are continuous efforts to decrease it further. He, however, said that if stubble burning in Haryana continues to pollution then his state was at greater risk.

EPCA chief Bhure Lal wrote to the chief secretaries of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and asked them to take the situation as a “public health emergency as it will have adverse health impacts on all, particularly our children”.