Delhi's air pollution woes continue to get worse with each day, as over 14 areas in the national capital recorded an AQI of over 400 on Sunday. Most of these areas that had ‘very poor’ air quality last week, have now fallen to the ‘severe’ zone, CPCB data showed.

The Delhi air pollution crisis worsened on Saturday with many areas coming in the "severe" category, even as authorities intensified their efforts by imposing penalties totalling around Rs 5.85 crore on the first day of anti-pollution measures under the third stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP),

Every year, Delhi and northern states battle hazardous air during the winter months of October to January due to plummeting temperatures, smoke, dust, low wind speed, vehicular emissions and crop stubble burning. This time, experts say that the condition is likely to get worse in the coming days.

Private BS III petrol and BS IV diesel vehicles were banned from roads with violations inviting a penalty of ₹20,000.

Northern India encountered the recurring annual pre-winter event of air emergency where the Air Quality Index (AQI) readings of main pollutant PM 2.5 breached the 400-mark of “very poor” and landed the air of Delhi, Punjab and other northern cities into the “hazardous” category.

Air pollution choking New Delhi has ground outdoor work to a halt and disrupted air travel in the Indian capital.

After reaching a peak, Delhi’s AQI has remained in the ‘severe’ category for the fourth day in a row. Covered in a thick blanket of fog and pollution, the poor visibility has even caused many school to remain closed for the past few days.