Delhi wakes up to heavy haze as AQI hits 337; expert downplays impact of Ethiopia volcano ash

A thick layer of haze settled over the national capital on Wednesday morning, with Delhi’s average Air Quality Index (AQI) touching 337 at 7 am, placing it in the ‘very poor’ category despite GRAP-III restrictions being in force across Delhi and the NCR, data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) showed.

Key locations across the city reported similar conditions. India Gate recorded an AQI of 358, Ghazipur stood at 363, and around AIIMS, the reading was 348, with visuals showing dense smog obscuring visibility near South Extension. In Bawana, the AQI touched 377, while NSIT Dwarka remained relatively better at 296, still in the ‘poor’ bracket.

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Volcanic ash not an immediate threat to Delhi’s AQI, say experts

As ash clouds from Ethiopia’s Hayli Gubbi volcano drift towards parts of India, environmentalist Vimlendu Jha said the phenomenon is unlikely to worsen Delhi’s air quality in the short term.

He explained, “The eruption of Ethopia’s volcano is enormous, and if you see it in the last 24 hours, whether we talk about Gujarat, Rajasthan or even in the last 12 hours, we can even see the ashes floating around Delhi. The overall impact of the eruption will be in the form of ash clouds and will not immediately affect the AQI in Delhi. The clouds are made of sulphur dioxide (SO2) and glass particles. Though it will not immediately affect the AQI, we need to monitor it, as the clouds are in the very upper atmosphere.”

Jha added that the impact may be felt elsewhere: “The impact of these clouds might be seen in the Himalayas, the Tarai region… and even parts of China.”

Local pollution still the bigger concern

Despite the volcanic ash discussion, Jha underlined that Delhi’s poor air quality remains overwhelmingly driven by local factors.

“In Delhi, more than half of the air quality monitoring stations are showing a rating of 400 plus of AQI, which is of the ‘severe’ category and in some areas, the AQI is even reaching 450 plus, which is basically ‘hazardous’… But if I factor in the private monitoring stations, the situation is worse, with my own device showing an AQI of 397 in my home.”

Under the national AQI scale, readings between 301–400 fall under ‘very poor’, while 401–500 are categorised as ‘severe’.