The verdict, both rulers
On its own count the pipeline puts the observed year at +46.4 points; with the weather removed it is still +1.1 points worse, on the model's count across 25 of 28 stations. 4 of 6 pollutants, PM2.5, PM10, SO2, CO, show no real improvement.
Against yesterday: the one-day move
From 121 to 118. The 95 per cent interval runs -6.7 to 1.6 points, on 41 matched stations, so the honest reading is level, not better.
Against last year: the observed reading
Today 118 across 42 stations. The year is judged on the 34 matched stations: 122 today against 77, the mean of the same date ±7 days of 2025 at those stations. The interval runs 38.2 to 52.7 points.
The worst station in the city today
Poor, on PM10. Last year this station read 116 on the ±7-day mean around this date; the change is 109.1 points. Within 500 m of the monitor, 91% of the land is built up and 8% is under vegetation, so this reading describes a densely built neighbourhood.
The year, from its best days to its worst
On the same 243 dates the best tenth of days reads 84 against 73, and the worst tenth 301 against 298. Each is unchanged inside its margin, and the days at or below 200 went from 164 to 165.
How much of the city was above AQI 200
That is 12.5 of 43.1 reporting stations, against 30 per cent over the same dates last year, a change of +0.6 points on an interval of -3.0 to +4.1, so it is unchanged inside its margin.
Who the monitoring network reaches
Within 4 km live 88 per cent of Delhi's people, within 2 km 41 per cent, and within 500 m only 3.3 per cent. India's own rules ask for about 46 particulate monitors, because IS 5182 scales the count to population, and Delhi has 44. So the count test passes, while 29 of the 44 zones still stretch past 4 km, which is as far as a monitor is held to speak.
What each monitor's reading speaks for
That is 6.7 per cent of Delhi, living around the 1 monitor that read Poor or worse. Wazirpur was worst at 225, and 1,408,080 people live within 4 km of it. On the wider count, 84 per cent live within 4 km of a monitor at Moderate or worse.
