GRAP-3 Restrictions Back In Delhi-NCR, Hybrid Mode Up To Class 5

GRAP-III recommendations have been reimposed across Delhi and the national capital region following "highly unfavourable meteorological conditions, including calm winds and very low mixing height", the Commission for Air Quality Management said Monday afternoon.

Under GRAP-III, all schools in Delhi-NCR must switch to a hybrid class mode for students till Class V, and there will be restrictions on the entry of diesel-powered commercial vehicles.

A hybrid class mode means students and parents can choose between online and in-person classes, depending on availability of infrastructure like computers and the internet at home.

Goods vehicles with engines below the BS-IV certification cannot run, except for those used for emergency purposes or to provide essential services, and goods carriers registered outside the national capital cannot, till further notice, enter the city if their engine is below the BS-IV mark.

Government offices in Delhi and neighbouring states will stagger working hours, with the central government likely to implement a similar measure for its offices in the national capital.

At 2.30 pm the city's AQI was 366, which is in the higher end of the 'very poor' category. This is a sharp spike from seven days ago; on December 7 it 233, which classified it as 'moderate'.

And, three days before that, Delhi's AQI was at 211.

The improvement in air quality meant the Supreme Court, on December 5, allowed the CAQM to relax anti-pollution measures from GRAP-IV, the strictest of a four-stage Graded Response Action Plan meant to tackle deteriorating air pollution in the national capital region.

Last month the air quality in Delhi and the surrounding areas was consistently in the 'severe' and 'very poor' category, prompting annual health warnings from medical professionals and triggering a rush of cases before the Supreme Court asking for directions to the government.

Over the past several weeks a top court bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih have held several hearings on the annual air quality crisis, looking at issues from farm fires (i.e., farmers burning agricultural waste) to ineffective bans on polluting vehicles.

In some cases, the court criticised the authorities for not following the law; for example, when GRAP-IV was in effect, the court slammed officials continuing to allow non-essential construction activities that are not permitted at that time. The court also had questions for the Delhi government for not stopping vehicles carrying non-essential goods from entering the city.

The court also questioned the Delhi government and the CAQM, a central government panel, for not ordering stricter anti-pollution measures once the AQI had crossed the 300-mark.

The Supreme Court - which hears cases and laments about Delhi's air quality every year - has been just as critical this year, particularly after the post-Diwali deterioration that is, again, an annual and predictable worsening of AQI after many in the city flout the ban on firecrackers.

In an earlier hearing the court bemoaned the bursting of firecrackers and came down heavily on the government and police, saying "no religion encourages any activity which creates pollution".

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