By: Express News ServiceJanuary 3, 2026 07:56 AM IST 3 min readDelhi’s air quality improved significantly on Friday, with the AQI dropping to 236, leading CAQM to revoke GRAP Stage III curbs across NCR. (ANI Photo)Delhi saw a significant improvement in the air quality on Friday with the city recording an average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 236 in the ‘Poor’ category, a sharp drop from Thursday’s 380 in the ‘Very Poor’ category.With other parts of the National Capital Region (NCR) also recording an improvement, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in NCR and Adjoining Areas on Friday revoked curbs imposed under Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).Meanwhile. the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has sounded a ‘yellow’ alert for fog for Saturday morning, which is likely to affect the visibility. Over the weekend, according to the forecast, moderate fog is likely at many places, with dense fog expected at isolated locations during the morning hours. Shallow to moderate fog is expected in subsequent days, the forecast noted.On Friday, Noida recorded an AQI of 229 in the ‘Poor’ category, compared to 367 a day before while Gurgaon, which recorded an AQI of 312 on Thursday, logged an AQI of 187 in the ‘Moderate’ category.Westerly winds with speeds of up to 15 kmph prevailed over Delhi during the previous 24 hours, aiding pollutant dispersion. However, with wind speeds expected to weaken and ventilation conditions to turn unfavourable in the coming days, air quality may slip back into the ‘Very Poor’ category from Sunday onwards, according to the forecast.On lifting of GRAP III, the CAQM order stated that Stage I and Stage II restrictions will continue to remain in force.“The AQI of Delhi has shown significant improvement owing to strong winds and favourable meteorological conditions. Further, the forecast by IMD/IITM predicts the AQI to remain in the ‘Poor’ to ‘Very Poor’ category in the coming days,” it read.The maximum temperature in the Capital settled at 17.4 degrees Celsius on Friday, 1.9 degrees below normal, while the minimum temperature was registered at 9.1 degrees Celsius, 2.2 notches above the seasonal average, the IMD said.Story continues below this adThe Capital is expected to see colder nights with the IMD forecasting that the minimum temperatures are likely to fall by 2-3°C over the next two days, before becoming normal.On Friday morning, as per the IMD data, Safdarjung, the base station in Delhi, recorded the lowest visibility of 800 metres due to shallow fog, while Palam reported a minimum visibility of 1,000 metres.Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:Delhi Pollution