The air quality across Delhi remained "poor" for the fourth consecutive day. The overall air quality index was recorded at 228 in the morning, as per the data revealed by System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).

Delhi's air quality index was around 240 late Tuesday. The city's 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) had stood at 237 on October 17 evening, data from CPCB showed.

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"No improvement is likely in the next six days," forecasting agencies had said on Monday.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered good, 51 and 100 satisfactory, 101 and 200 moderate, 201 and 300 poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 and 500 severe.

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The Delhi government has already started spraying PUSA decomposers on harvested paddy fields to prevent stubble burning in the national capital. Earlier, authorities were asked to strictly implement measures under Stage I of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).

पराली गलाने के लिए बायो डी-कंपोजर के घोल का छिड़काव शुरू। लगभग 5000 एकड़ जमीन में किया जाएगा छिड़काव, छिड़काव के लिए बनाई गई 21 टीमें। pic.twitter.com/4NkzQgQzDo

— Gopal Rai (@AapKaGopalRai) October 18, 2022

The PUSA decomposer is a microbial solution developed by the ICAR - Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI). It helps decompose the stubble and clear the fields before the next crop is sown.

The Delhi government aims to spray bio-decomposer over 5000 acres of agricultural land this year. The development department has also formed 21 teams for the same.

The government will spray bio-decomposer free of cost on all Basmati as well as non-Basmati agricultural fields, India Today reported. The farmers have already filled out the form expressing interest in spraying bio-decomposer on their agricultural fields, the report said.

First Published:Oct 19, 2022 11:16 AM IST