India, Oct. 21 -- The Capital recorded its first poor air quality reading of the season on Wednesday morning, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) at 227 at 7.05 am, official data showed.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data analysed by the HT AQI Dashboard, the air quality turned poor overnight into Wednesday. The deterioration followed Dussehra celebrations on Tuesday evening, when effigies were burnt and firecrackers were set off in several parts of the city, adding to emissions from Durga Puja festivities.

The dip also came as NASA's satellite counted 182 farm fires in Punjab and Haryana in the three days to October 20. The count since October 1 stands at 397, against 523 over the same dates last season. However,...