New Delhi: Delhi’s air quality worsened sharply on Diwali, with 34 of the city’s 38 air monitoring stations recording pollution levels in the ‘red zone’ on Monday, indicating ‘very poor’ to ‘severe’ conditions across the national capital.

According to official data, Delhi’s 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI), reported at 4 pm, stood at 345, firmly in the ‘very poor’ category and higher than Sunday’s reading of 326.

Data from the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) SAMEER app showed that four stations had already entered the ‘severe’ category, with AQI levels above 400. These included Dwarka (417), Ashok Vihar (404), Wazirpur (423), and Anand Vihar (404). Around 30 other stations reported ‘very poor’ air, with AQI levels above 300.

By afternoon, 31 of 38 stations continued to

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