AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal has raised alarm over the alleged deletion of a significant number of voters from the electoral roll in Delhi ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections. Addressing a press conference on Friday, Kejriwal accused the BJP of filing applications with the Election Commission of India (ECI) to remove thousands of voters from constituencies like Shahdara, Janakpuri, and Laxmi Nagar.

“Applications filed for deletion of thousands of votes in Shahdara, Janakpuri, Laxmi Nagar, other Assembly seats”, said AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal.

“BJP filing applications with election commission for deletion of large number of votes in Delhi ahead of polls”, the AAP chief added.

According to Kejriwal, the BJP had requested the removal of 11,018 voters in the Shahdara area. However, after cross-checking the details of 500 voters, he claimed that 75% of them were still residing in the locality, raising concerns that their names could still be removed from the electoral list.

“The BJP has filed an application to delete the names of 11,018 voters in the Shahdara area, but when we cross-checked that application on 500 names, 75 per cent of people were still living there, but their names can be deleted from the electoral roll,” Kejriwal said.

The AAP leader further claimed that Shahdara, which was won by AAP in the last election by a margin of around 5,000 votes, is seeing the deletion of names of voters who largely support the Aam Aadmi Party. This, he believes, could influence the outcome of the upcoming elections.

In a bid to ensure transparency, Kejriwal urged the Election Commission to upload all applications related to voter deletions on its website by the evening for public scrutiny. This would allow citizens to verify the authenticity of these claims and ensure the integrity of the election process.

The allegations have sparked concerns about potential electoral manipulation, with AAP calling for immediate action to protect the rights of voters.

NEW DELHI: This Nov is the second most polluted penultimate month ever after 2021. The average air quality index of Nov this year was 375 against 376 in Nov 2021.
This was also the first time in Nov when AQI never fell below 300 in the entire month, according to data from Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), which started calculating the index in April 2015.
Delhiites witnessed eight ‘severe’ days, including two ‘severe-plus’ days, this month. With no rain providing respite from the toxic pollution, emissions from local and regional sources, along with unfavourable meteorological conditions, led to high pollution levels.
The lowest AQI was 303, which was still in the ‘very poor’ category. The month also witnessed AQI reaching 494 on a scale of up to 500 on Nov 18, making it the second most polluted day ever. On 10 days, AQI was above 390.
Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at Centre for Science and Environment, said, “It is a matter of concern that the overall average PM2.5 levels of winter months are upward now. Even though meteorology plays a role, it is necessary to assess how local and regional emissions are increasing, aggravating the winter build-up. This requires very stringent year-round multi-sector action, not only in Delhi, but also in the entire NCR and beyond.”
Last year, the average AQI in Nov was 373. It was 321 in 2022, 328 in 2020, 312 in 2019, 335 in 2018, 361 in 2017, 374 in 2016 and 358 in 2020.
Dipankar Saha, former head of CPCB’s air laboratory, said, “As no strong western disturbance impacted the plains, there was no rain activity in Nov this year. Rain helps in settling down the pollutants. Since Delhi records adverse meteorology in winter months, the focus should be on emissions reductions at the ground.”
The second most polluted Nov came after Oct 2024 recorded the worst air quality since Oct 2020. Delhi’s average AQI was 231 this Oct, making it the highest since 2020, when it was 265. The average AQI was 219 last Oct, 210 in Oct 2022, 173 in Oct 2021, 234 in Oct 2019, 269 in Oct 2018, 285 in Oct 2017, 271 in Oct 2016, and 264 in Oct 2015.
CPCB classifies an AQI between 0 and 50 as ‘good’, between 51 and 100 as ‘satisfactory’, between 101 and 200 as ‘moderate’, between 201 and 300 as ‘poor’, between 301 and 400 as ‘very poor’, and over 400 as ‘severe’.

NEW DELHI: Delhi residents awoke to dense smog on Thursday morning, causing a sharp drop in visibility and pushing air quality into the ‘severe’ category.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the city’s average Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 432. Anand Vihar recorded an AQI of 473, IGI Airport (T3) 435, and ITO 421, AIIMS at 438, based on CPCB data at 7am.
A school student Raunak said that he had been coughing continuously due to the excessive pollution around.
“I go for running daily. However these days with the increase in pollution, I have been coughing continuously which could also affect my lungs. If there is a controlled use of pollution and more of CNG based vehicles, the problem could be solved. However there is no cooperation by the people,” Raunak said.
Prateek, another local said that the visibility had reduced, and people had started feeling suffocated.
“The pollution level has increased a lot. The visibility on the roads have reduced, there is barely any visibility, our eyes burn and we have started feeling suffocated. The government needs to do something on this,” Prateek said.
Track pollution levels in your city
‘Severe’ category
Delhi’s AQI has consistently stayed in the “very poor” range since October 30. Wednesday marked the first instance this season where it reached the “severe” category.
The smog, which had been lingering over parts of Punjab and eastern Pakistan for several days, extended to large areas of northern India by early Wednesday.
It quickly combined with local pollutants, creating a dense, toxic haze across the NCR. Delhi’s average AQI rose to 418, the worst in the country. The last time Delhi recorded a higher AQI was on January 14, at 447.
Despite the high AQI, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) described it as an “episodic event” and opted not to implement restrictive measures under Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).
The CAQM stated that AQI levels were likely to improve to the “very poor” range by Friday due to anticipated strong winds.
The CPCB classifies AQI as follows: 0-50 as “good,” 51-100 “satisfactory,” 101-200 “moderate,” 201-300 “poor,” 301-400 “very poor,” 401-450 “severe,” and above 450 as “severe plus.”