Air quality has deteriorated sharply on Monday in foggy northern India, including the capital, New Delhi, due to bad weather and increased smoke from burning agricultural waste in fields across the region.
The BM-2.5 particles, accurate particles that could reach the lungs and cause serious health problems, reached more than 400 in most parts of the capital, and in some places rose to more than 600.
The level is almost 24 times the recommended level of 25 micrograms per cubic meter on average over a 24-hour period set by the World Health Organization, which this year said India has the world's 14 most polluted cities.
New Delhi has been classified as the sixth most polluted city.
After a slight improvement, Sunday, as a result of increased wind speed, air quality worsened, early Monday, and forecasters predict it will worsen over the next few days.
"Wind speed has fallen to 15 kilometers per hour from 29, and there has been a significant increase in the burning of crop residues in Punjab and Haryana in the last few hours," said Anomita Roichudhuri, executive director of the Science and Environment Center, a research institution, referring to two states where farmers burn Straw in their fields in preparation for winter crops.
Authorities warn that the burning of crop residues will peak in the next few days.
