New Delhi: After nearly a fortnight of hazardous smog, Delhi's air quality improved to 'poor' at 271 on Wednesday on the back of stronger winds, though the conditions are forecast to worsen again.

Delhi's 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) stood at 271, in the 'poor' category, on Wednesday, a sharp improvement from the 'severe' AQI of 412 recorded at 4 pm on Tuesday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.

The last time the city’s air quality was recorded in the poor category was on December 10, after which it remained in the 'very poor' and 'severe' zones for several days before improving again on Wednesday.

Favourable meteorological conditions, particularly surface wind speeds of 15–25 kmph during the day, helped improve air quality.

The predominant surface wind was from the northwest, with speeds reaching up to 20 kmph during afternoon hours.

However, the wind speeds are expected to decrease to below 10 kmph from the west direction during the evening and night, according to the Air Quality Early Warning System.

Six additional air quality monitoring stations to be set up to bolster anti-pollution efforts: Delhi CM

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Wednesday said the government will establish air quality monitoring stations at six additional locations in the capital, including the premises of JNU and IGNOU.

This will enable data-driven pollution control interventions, she added.

At present, 40 Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) are operational in Delhi, including 24 under Delhi Pollution

Control Committee (DPCC), seven under Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, six under Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), and one under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.