As the Air Quality Index (AQI) already crossed over 200 at several areas of the National Capital Region (NCR) for the second consecutive day, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Monday imposed restrictions, invoking the first stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to prevent further deterioration of air quality in entire Delhi and also in districts of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan that fall under the NCR. The ban will be in force from 8 am on Tuesday.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi’s 24-hour average air quality index stood at 234 (poor category) as of 4 pm on Monday. Following Dussehra, the AQI in Delhi entered the “poor” category on Sunday, recording a reading of 224. This marked the first instance of poor air quality since September 25, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
The GRAP’s Stage 1 has a 27-point action plan, which includes sprinkling water on roads, using anti-smog guns, and ensuring proper disposal of construction and demolition waste. It also imposes a ban on the use of coal and firewood in hotels, restaurants, and open eateries.
It also mandates the suspension of work at private construction and demolition projects of 500 sq m or more not registered on the portal of the respective State government for remote monitoring of dust mitigation measures.
Under the GRAP stage one, it mandated traffic police to deploy more personnel for smooth traffic flow at all identified corridors with heavy traffic and congestion prone intersections; Strict vigilance and enforcement of PUC norms for vehicles and no tolerance for visible emissions stop visibly polluting vehicles by impounding and / or levying maximum penalty. The GRAP is a set of emergency measures taken to reduce air pollution.
Under Stage 1, GRAP calls for strict enforcement of the Supreme Court and National Green Tribunal orders on phasing out of overage diesel and petrol vehicles. The CAQM and weather forecasts from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) comprehensively reviewed the air quality scenario in the region on Monday and decided to initiate Stage 1 control measures, according to an official statement.
The CAQM said in a statement that there has been a sudden dip in air quality parameters in the last 24 hrs in the region which led to the AQI for Delhi moving into the POOR” category and the forecasts also predict air quality to mainly remain in “Poor” category in coming days owing to the unfavourable meteorological condition.
The GRAP is an emergency response mechanism that’s triggered when the AQI reaches “poor” levels. The AQI is a measure of air pollution levels that indicates how air pollution can affect health. The severity of pollution for implementation of GRAP has been categorised into four stages, based on Delhi’s AQI levels: Stage I - ‘Poor’ (AQI 201-300); Stage II - ‘Very Poor’ (AQI 301-400); Stage III - ‘Severe’ (AQI 401-450); and Stage IV - ‘Severe+’ (AQI > 450).
Each stage outlines specific actions that must be implemented to curb pollution levels.
It is noted that the State of Global Air 2024 by the Health Effects Institute highlighted alarming numbers on the deaths caused due to air pollution in 2021. Globally, in 2021, air pollution was found to be the second-leading risk factor for death, accounting for roughly 8.1 million deaths.
The high pollution levels and large population of India have led to 2.1 million of these deaths, out of which 237,000 were attributable to ozone exposure.
A study by the Lancet Planetary Health in 2024 also estimated mortality in 10 cities of India because of ambient air pollution. Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Shimla and Varanasi have reported on an average more than 33,000 deaths every year, according to the findings.
Delhi alone was found to have reported around 12,000 deaths which can be attributed to air pollution. These death figures highlight how urgently we need to take effective and sustained action.
