New Delhi:

The Centre’s panel on Delhi-NCR’s air quality on Sunday revoked stage 3 curbs under the Graded Response Action Plan after witnessing a dip in air pollution levels owing to favourable meteorological conditions, especially improved wind speed, according to an official order.

The city’s 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) stood at 339 at 4 pm on Sunday.

According to forecasts from the India Meteorological Department and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, the air quality is predicted to improve further — from “severe” to “poor” — due to favourable meteorological conditions.

The IMD has predicted rain in northwest India over the next two-three days due to back-to-back western disturbances.

The Commission for Air Quality Management, responsible for strategising air pollution mitigation in Delhi-NCR, directed authorities in the region to immediately revoke curbs prescribed under stage 3 to prevent further worsening of the situation.

GRAP Stage 3, which was brought back on Friday, entails a ban on non-essential construction work.

Classes up to grade 5 are required to shift to hybrid mode under Stage 3. Parents and students have the option to choose online education wherever available.

Under Stage 3, the use of BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel cars (four-wheelers) is restricted in Delhi and nearby NCR districts. Persons with disabilities are exempted. Stage 3 also bans non-essential diesel-operated medium goods vehicles with BS-IV or older standards in Delhi.

During winters, the Delhi-NCR region enforces restrictions under GRAP, which categorises air quality into four stages – Stage I (Poor, AQI 201-300), Stage II (Very Poor, AQI 301-400), Stage III (Severe, AQI 401-450), and Stage IV (Severe Plus, AQI above 450).

Unfavourable meteorological conditions, combined with vehicle emissions, paddy-straw burning, firecrackers, and other local pollution sources, lead to hazardous air quality levels in Delhi-NCR during winters.

Doctors say that breathing Delhi’s polluted air is equivalent to smoking approximately 10 cigarettes a day.

Prolonged exposure to high pollution levels can exacerbate respiratory issues such as asthma, bronchitis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and significantly increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Stringent anti-pollution measure GRAP-4 has been revoked in Delhi and the neighbouring region amid a dip in pollution levels. The air quality index or AQI of Delhi has been “continuously improving” since morning, said the committee on GRAP curbs. At 5 PM, the AQI was “very poor” at 364, which is 36 points below the limits decided by the Supreme Court for invoking Stage-4.

Curbs under Stages 1, 2 and 3, however, will remain in force to prevent any further worsening of the air quality, said the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). “Actions under Stage I, II, and III of the revised GRAP shall remain invoked and be implemented, monitored, and reviewed by all the agencies concerned in the entire NCR to ensure that the AQI levels do not slip further,” the commission said in its order.

Stage-4 curbs under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) were reimposed, nearly 10 days after the measures were eased to Stage-2, in the national capital and its adjoining areas last week (December 16) when it breached the 400 mark. 

The AQI is likely to remain in the “very poor” category in the coming days due to favourable meteorological conditions and wind speed, according to the air quality and weather forecast provided by the India Meteorological Department and Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology.

Measures under GRAP-4 include a ban on all construction activities, entry of non-essential polluting trucks into Delhi and mandatory shifting of school classes, except for classes 10 and 12, to hybrid mode.

The Graded Response Action Plan is a set of emergency measures implemented in the national capital region to battle air pollution based on the severity of the Air Quality Index.

Every year, Delhi sees a dip in the air quality with dipping temperatures due to low wind speeds, vehicle emissions and the burning of crop remains and firewood.

Recently, the Delhi government imposed a round-the-year ban on firecrackers which led the Supreme Court to direct Uttar Pradesh and Haryana to enforce a similar move.

New Delhi:

Delhi’s air quality deteriorated further during the day, breaching the 400 mark, and dipping into the ‘Severe+’ category, forcing the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), the Centre’s anti-pollution panel, to impose GRAP 4 restrictions in the national capital and its adjoining areas from tonight.

This comes hours after CAQM imposed GRAP 3 during the day when the air quality was hovering over 300. During the day, the panel said measures in stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) have been implemented following “highly unfavourable meteorological conditions, including calm winds and very low mixing height”. Delhi’s 24-hour average air quality index, which was 379 at 4 pm, which breached the 400 mark around 10 pm.

Later in the evening, the panel said, “Considering the steep rise in the AQI of Delhi owing to highly unfavourable meteorological conditions and absolute calm wind conditions, the CAQM Sub-Committee on GRAP called for an emergency meeting.”

“The Sub-Committee decided to impose Stage-IV (‘Severe+’ Air Quality) of the  GRAP schedule (issued on 13.12.2024) in the entire NCR, with immediate effect,” they added.

Meanwhile, schools in Noida will start from 9 am tomorrow due to severe cold and air pollution, operating in a hybrid mode.

What’s Allowed And What’s Not

• Stop entry of truck traffic into Delhi. Ban on construction and demolition activities for linear public projects such as highways, roads, flyovers, overbridges, power transmission, pipelines, telecommunication etc.
• The government can discontinue physical classes, including Classes Vl – lX and Class Xl.
• The government is to decide on allowing public, municipal and private offices to work on 50% strength and the rest to work from home.
• State governments may consider additional emergency measures like the closure of colleges/educational institutions and closure of non-emergency commercial activities, permitting the running of vehicles on the odd-even basis of registration numbers etc.
• Children, the elderly and those with respiratory, cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, or other chronic diseases to avoid outdoor activities and stay indoors.
• Ban on all construction and demolition activities, including public projects such as highways and flyovers

Last month the air quality in Delhi and the surrounding areas was consistently in the ‘severe’ and ‘very poor’ category, prompting annual health warnings from medical professionals and triggering a rush of cases before the Supreme Court asking for directions to the government.

Over the past several weeks a top court bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih have held several hearings on the annual air quality crisis, looking at issues from farm fires (i.e., farmers burning agricultural waste) to ineffective bans on polluting vehicles.

In some cases, the court criticised the authorities for not following the law; for example, when GRAP-IV was in effect, the court slammed officials continuing to allow non-essential construction activities that are not permitted at that time. The court also had questions for the Delhi government for not stopping vehicles carrying non-essential goods from entering the city.

The court also questioned the Delhi government and the CAQM, a central government panel, for not ordering stricter anti-pollution measures once the AQI had crossed the 300-mark.