Thick fog engulfed Delhi on Friday as the air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 460, plummeting to the ‘severe plus’ category, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Residents complained of irritation in the eyes and itchy throats with the air turning a dense grey as the AQI even touched 500 in several parts of the city. The worsening air quality triggered measures by the authorities to tackle air pollution. An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 and 200 ‘moderate’, 201 and 300 ‘poor’, 301 and 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 and 500 ‘severe’.
- All government and private primary schools in Delhi will remain closed for two days (Friday and Saturday), given rising pollution levels.
- To combat air pollution, a ban has been imposed on non-essential construction work and specific categories of polluting vehicles (polluting trucks, commercial four-wheelers).
- Vehicles with older emissions standards have been stopped from running in some areas of NCR. Activities such as construction and demolition (C&D), stone crushing, and mining have been barred.
- Restrictions on plying BS III petrol and BS IV diesel four-wheelers in Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, and Gautam Budh Nagar.
- Apart from the launch of the “Red Light on Gaadi Off” campaign to curb vehicular pollution, Delhi Metro will run 20 extra train trips across its network starting today to encourage more and more people to use public transport in Delhi and neighboring cities, officials said.
- The Centre has already activated Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), the Centre’s air pollution control plan which is implemented in the region during the winter season.GRAP categorizes actions 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).