Overview
- Citywide AQI climbed to roughly 376–390 over Dec 2–3, with 14–19 of 39 monitoring stations breaching 400 on multiple readings, CPCB data show.
- The Air Quality Early Warning System projects conditions in the very poor range at least through Dec 5, with no immediate improvement expected.
- A Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant questioned the farmer-blame narrative and directed the Centre, CAQM and CPCB to file a detailed status report within a week.
- The Centre told Parliament that Delhi’s January–November average AQI is the lowest since 2018 excluding 2020, and reported about a 90% drop in farm-fire incidents versus 2022.
- A CSE analysis links synchronized PM2.5, NO2 and CO surges to traffic and other local combustion sources, noting CO exceedances at 22 stations and expanding pollution hotspots across Delhi-NCR.