Delhi air slips to 'poor' for first time this season; GRAP Stage I curbs in force across NCR

Delhi and the surrounding National Capital Region are under the first stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) after air quality in the capital turned "poor" for the first time this season.

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) invoked Stage I across the NCR on Wednesday, 21 October, with immediate effect. A GRAP sub-committee took the decision after Delhi's Air Quality Index rose from 179, in the "moderate" band, on 20 October to about 244 by 2 pm the next day, according to ANI and Business Today.

How bad is the air

Several NCR cities also recorded poor air on 21 October. Business Today reported readings of around 280 in Greater Noida, 249 in Noida and 223 in Ghaziabad, with one monitoring location in the region slipping into the "very poor" range. Fine particulate matter, PM2.5 and PM10, were the main pollutants.

Forecasts from weather and air quality agencies suggest the AQI is likely to stay in the poor category over the coming days, which is why the commission acted early.

What Stage I means

Stage I is the mildest of GRAP's four levels. It does not shut schools or ban private cars. Instead, it requires stricter dust control at construction sites, a ban on open burning of garbage and leaves, and enforcement of vehicle emission rules, including valid pollution-under-control certificates. Under a revised schedule, some restrictions on diesel generator sets and older buses now apply from Stage I, Business Today reported.

Implementing agencies have been told to intensify these measures, and the sub-committee will keep reviewing conditions. Stricter stages, including curbs on older petrol and diesel vehicles, can follow if air quality worsens.

Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said the city had recorded 214 days of good or moderate air so far this year, which he described as the best in 12 years excluding the pandemic year, ANI reported.

Why it matters

Late October usually marks the start of Delhi's toughest pollution season, as cooler, calmer weather traps smoke and dust near the ground. Residents, especially children, older people and those with respiratory problems, are advised by authorities to follow the GRAP citizen charter and avoid adding to local pollution.