Delhi AQI today 348: AAP’s Saurabh Bharadwaj alleges data manipulation, citing CREA report
AAP's Saurabh Bharadwaj says a CREA report shows official readings understate pollution, and the reports carried no government reply to that claim.
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Delhi AQI today stood at 348 on Saturday 14 November, in the “very poor” category, ANI reported. Speaking to ANI, Aam Aadmi Party leader Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged data manipulation, citing a report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), and claimed that actual pollution was higher than the government’s displayed readings.
Delhi AQI today: station readings
North Campus recorded an AQI of 421, followed by IIT Delhi at 419, ITO at 415 and Burari Crossing at 410, all in the severe range, per ANI. Other stations stayed in the very poor band, with Chandni Chowk at 392 and JNU at 390, ETV Bharat said. The Commission for Air Quality Management ordered GRAP 3 in the NCR on 6 November.
Key numbers
- 348: Delhi AQI on Saturday morning, per ANI. ETV Bharat gave 349 at 7 am from the Central Pollution Control Board.
- 421: North Campus AQI, the highest reading cited, per ANI.
- 333: Gurugram AQI, with Noida at 328 and Greater Noida at 322, per ETV Bharat.
- 49 per cent: the gap Bharadwaj alleged between displayed and actual levels, per Free Press Journal.
What Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged about the Delhi AQI data
“CREA showed that the pollution shown for Delhi was 49 per cent higher than what you were told,” Bharadwaj said, according to Free Press Journal. These are his claims, and the reports did not carry a response from the Delhi government. An earlier NIS report covers how CPCB defended the AQI cap of 500 after questions on data gaps.
Government response and the Yamuna fish row
Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said on Wednesday that cloud seeding trials were under way under the supervision of IIT Kanpur, and that details would be shared once the study was completed, ANI said. A separate row over the Yamuna has also fed the political exchange. Delhi Water Minister Parvesh Verma accused AAP of staging the scene. “They are buying dead fish from the market and dumping them in the river and posting videos in an attempt to defame us,” Verma said, ThePrint reported. Bharadwaj replied that the government “should accept that thousands of fish have died in the Yamuna due to pollution.”
What happens next for Delhi AQI today
The Meteorological Department expects light rain and winds of 15 to 20 kilometres per hour in parts of Delhi on Sunday, which may bring some relief, per ETV Bharat. Readings will show whether the forecast changes the picture. More national coverage is on our India page.
Readers in Delhi and the NCR rely on official AQI readings to decide on masks, schools and travel, so a claim that displayed figures run 49 per cent below actual levels matters even though it is unverified. The Meteorological Department's Sunday rain forecast will show whether relief arrives.
Named in this story
Sources
- Delhi's air quality remains very poor with AQI at 348 (ANI)
- Delhi's Air Quality Remains Very Poor As Smog Lingers; IMD Predicts Rain On Sunday (ETV Bharat)
- Delhi AQI Remains Very Poor At 348 (Free Press Journal)
- Yamuna pollution row: Delhi minister accuses AAP of dumping dead fish in river (ThePrint, PTI)