Delhi air pollution: Why dust cover will stay for few more days

Delhi air quality continues to be severe as dust-laden winds head towards Delhi-NCR. PM10 level stands at 816 ug/m3 today. Met department says that similar weather condition will continue for the next few days.

If you are living in Delhi and surrounding areas of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana or Western Uttar Pradesh, you must be biting dust these days. Breath would be shorter and heavier as dust particles seem to be on "Dilli Chalo" mode. Met department says that similar weather condition will continue for the next few days

The government has declared pollution emergency in Delhi-NCR under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in consultation with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

But why is there so much of dust in the air?

"The western disturbance as an upper air cyclonic circulation at 3.1 km above mean sea level over eastern parts of Jammu and Kashmir and neighborhood persists. Strong northwesterly/westerly winds are prevailing in the lower levels over Northern Plains," reads the weather inference report of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).

Simply put, dust is arriving in Delhi and NCR from Rajasthan and neighboring areas of Pakistan. The low pressure in Jammu and Kashmir is the reason for dust in Punjab and Haryana. As the mercury is still soaring in Western Rajasthan and Eastern Pakistan, dust cover over North India may stay for another week.