Video: Massive Landfill Catches Fire In Delhi Amid Air Quality Concerns

A fire broke out at the Ghazipur landfill site in Delhi, adding to the national capital's worsening air quality, officials said on Wednesday. In visuals, plumes of smoke were seen rising from the waste dumping ground.

This comes on a day when Delhi's overall air quality deteriorated to the "severe" category from "very poor".

The fire officials received information regarding the blaze at 9.56 pm on Tuesday following which five fire tenders were rushed to the spot, reported news agency PTI quoting officials. Three more fire engines were dispatched to douse the blaze late, they added.

No injuries have been reported in the incident and the cause of the fire has not been ascertained yet, they said.

The landfill in east Delhi is close to Uttar Pradesh city Ghazibad, which had emerged as the most polluted city in 2019, according to a survey by IQAir AirVisual, an agency that monitors air pollution across the globe. New Delhi topped the list of the most polluted capital cities in the world, said the survey which also revealed that 21 of the world's most polluted 30 cities are in India.

The national capital's AQI was in "severe" category on November 15 the last time but after that it had improved and remained in either "poor" or "moderate" category until November 22.

The AAP administration has been holding the governments of Haryana and Punjab responsible for the worrying level of pollution in the national capital. Every year at the onset of winters, crop residue burning or stubble burning begins in Punjab and Haryana leading to heavy air pollution in Delhi.