Stage 4 GRAP restrictions include a ban on all construction activities...
Delhi experienced 'severe' air quality on Tuesday, with the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) reaching 421 at around 8 am, according to the Sameer app, which provides hourly updates on the National Air Quality Index.
The air quality in other cities within the National Capital Region (NCR) was similarly poor. Greater Noida recorded an AQI of 398, while Noida, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram registered 382, 380, and 356, respectively. Faridabad, with an AQI of 258, reported the best air quality in the region.
In response to the deteriorating air quality, the Centre for Air Quality Management (CAQM) reintroduced Stage 4 restrictions of the Graded Action Response Plan (GRAP), effective immediately, across the NCR.
By 9 pm on Monday, Delhi’s AQI had touched 399 and surpassed the 400 mark by 10 pm, leading to an emergency CAQM meeting. Officials decided to reinstate Stage 4 curbs under GRAP.
Earlier, on December 5, the Supreme Court had permitted the CAQM to relax restrictions from Stage 4 to Stage 2 due to improved AQI levels in the NCR.
Stage 4 GRAP restrictions include a ban on all construction activities, prohibition of polluting trucks carrying non-essential goods into Delhi, and mandatory shifting of school classes (except for grades X and XII) to a hybrid mode.
The Brief. Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now.