New Delhi [India], November 22 : Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) NCR and Adjoining Areas has revised the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) for the entire NCR, directed to impose the measures for 'Severe' AQI category under GRAP Stage IV to be taken under GRAP Stage III, a press release said.
According to a press release by CAQM, as measures under GRAP IV are now under GRAP III, the NCR State Governments/GNCTD will decide whether public, municipal, and private offices can operate at 50 per cent strength, with the rest working from home.
The Central Government may take a decision on permitting work from home for employees in central government offices.
Meanwhile, directing a change in the schedule of GRAP, the measures currently under GRAP Stage II will be taken under GRAP Stage I. Now under GRAP I, the government will ensure an uninterrupted power supply to discourage the use of alternate power-generating sets/ equipment, and synchronise traffic movements and deploy adequate personnel at intersections/traffic congestion points for smooth flow of traffic.
Other measures include alerts in newspapers/TV/ radio to advise people about air pollution levels and do's and don'ts for minimising polluting activities. Augment public transport services through CNG/electric buses and metro services by inducting additional fleet and increasing the frequency of service. Introduce differential rates to encourage off-peak travel, the press release said.
The following measures currently under GRAP Stage III will be taken under GRAP Stage II. In the new GRAP II, GNCTD and NCR State Governments will stagger timings for public offices and municipal bodies in the National Capital Territory of Delhi and the districts of Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Gautam Budh Nagar. State Governments may take a decision to stagger timings for public offices and municipal bodies in other areas of NCR. Central Government may take a decision on staggering of timings of Central Government offices in Delhi-NCR, the release added.
GRAP is an emergency response mechanism for the entire NCR, based on Average AQI levels and forecasts for meteorological/ weather conditions in Delhi, that brings together multiple stakeholders, implementing agencies and authorities in NCR to respond to situations of deteriorating air quality in the region. GRAP for NCR has been formulated after careful consideration of scientific data, stakeholder consultations, expert recommendations, along with field experience and learnings in the past years.
Earlier this morning, Delhi's air quality persisted in the 'very poor' category, recording an average AQI of 359, according to data from the Air Quality Early Warning System. Despite recording a slight improvement from the average of 364 AQI recorded on Friday, a layer of toxic smog continued to envelope parts of the city early in the morning.
The ITO area, which recorded an AQI of 370 in the 'very poor category', saw commuters going about their day amid the smog. Meanwhile, the Noida area also continued to have its air remain in the 'severe' category, with Sector 125 recording an AQI of 434, with slight improvement seen since Friday.
Greater Noida area seemed to have comparatively better air quality; while the Knowledge Park 5 area recorded 393 AQI, the Knowledge Park 3 recorded 294 AQI in the 'poor' category.
According to locals, the increased vehicular traffic has really affected the air quality in the area. "The buses, cars, which are increasing day by day, and there is no way for the cars to fit on the roads, that's how many there are, so pollution is increasing. There should be some control on the vehicles," one of the residents from the Punjabi Bagh area said.
Another local expressed that her daily life has become increasingly difficult due to the deteriorating air quality. "What can I even say? Coming out is becoming difficult; people are getting sick, it is difficult to go to the park, can't even go to the market. We are very troubled," she said.