Delhiites welcomed the weekend with good rains. Most parts of the national capital were soaked in the joy of rain.
While the rains were a welcoming relief from the miserably hot and humid conditions, it was also a blessing regarding pollution levels.
These rains have been attributed to the induced cyclonic circulation over North Rajasthan and its interaction with the Western Disturbance, which is presently over Jammu and Kashmir. Fairly widespread rain has been recorded in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, North Rajasthan, and some parts of Uttar Pradesh.
Before the rains in Delhi, the city was reeling under high pollution levels. However, with widespread rain in the national capital, pollutants that were settled in the atmosphere have been washed away.
Thus pollution levels have witnessed a dramatic fall. Usually, when patchy rain occurs over the national capital, dry northwesterly winds from areas with no rain let the pollutants remain suspended.
As per the data by SAFAR, Delhi University recorded PM2.5 as 77, Pitampura 82, Mathura Road 97, Pusa 95, Gurgaon 95, Lodhi Road 90, Ayanagar 128, and Noida 193. While most of the places have PM2.5 below 100, Noida, which is notorious for being highly polluted, has also recorded lower pollution levels.
For the next 2 to 3 days, pollution levels will remain on the lower side. After that, a fresh system may result in good rains over Delhi once again around March 10, which will again keep the pollution at bay.
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