For private construction, non-polluting and non-dust generating activities such as plumbing works, interior decoration, electrical works and carpentry related works are also permitted
Pollution levels in the national capital spiked to an Air Quality Index (AQI) reading of 399 (the high end of “very poor”) on Friday, prompting the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to invoke measures under Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (Grap), which includes a ban on private construction activities.
The Capital logged an AQI of 306 (very poor) on Thursday, but unfavourable meteorological conditions, including cold temperatures and calm surface winds, led to the sharp drop in air quality on Friday.
Subsequently, CAQM held an emergency meeting, and decided to invoke Stage III or the “severe” category of Grap, under which all private construction activities across Delhi-NCR are banned, along with the closure of all brick kilns and hot mix plants not operating on clean fuels, the closure of all stone crushers in NCR, and a ban on mining and its associated activities.
“While assessing the overall air quality parameters, the sub-committee noted that due to extreme unfavourable meteorological conditions, the overall air quality of Delhi has deteriorated over last few hours and there is an increasing trend further in the coming days as per the Air Quality forecast… Therefore, it is considered necessary to put Stage-III of Grap back in place with immediate effect in the entire NCR in an effort to prevent further deterioration of air quality in the region,” CAQM said in a statement.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) classifies an AQI between 0-50 as “good”, between 51 and 100 as “satisfactory”, between 101 and 200 as “moderate”, between 201 and 300 as “poor”, between 301 and 400 as “very poor”, and over 400 as “severe”.
The CAQM relies on the Early Warning System (EWS) for Delhi, developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology.
The commission noted that forecasts show Delhi’s AQI could touch “severe” on New Year’s eve and remain so on January 1 as well, requiring certain restrictions to be imposed. Forecasts show that Delhi’s AQI will return to the “very poor” category only on January 2, and even then, conditions are likely to be unfavourable for significant dispersal of pollutants, as temperatures will be low.
Under Stage III of Grap, states also have the option to enforce a ban on BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel vehicles. However, Delhi’s transport department said a decision on imposing such a ban was yet to be taken.
“A decision on whether to impose these restrictions will be decided soon. The order (to impose Stage III of Grap) came in the evening and an immediate ban on such vehicles will not be imposed,” a government official said.