Construction ban in NCR as AQI on verge of ‘severe’

Grap III Measures In Place; Outlook Poor Till Tuesday

- Priyangi Agarwal

‘Delhi may impose curbs on some vehicles’

New Delhi: With air quality likely to touch “severe” in Delhi on Sunday, the sub-committee of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Saturday banned all construction and demolition activities across Delhi-NCR, ordered closure of brick kilns and hot mix plants not operating on approved fuels apart from barring stone crushers and mining operations.

The measures were enforced as per the “severe” category under stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in Delhi-NCR. Delhi’s average AQI on Saturday plummeted to 397, in the “very poor” zone verging on “severe”, and is likely to deteriorate further till Tuesday. The share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 rose to 21%, the highest so far this season.

The CAQM chairperson has written to the Punjab chief secretary requesting immediate action to curb farm fires in the state. CAQM has also sought proper implementation of the action plan and a comprehensive report on action taken in all reported cases of stubble burning.