The air quality index in Delhi and NCR regions such as Noida and Gurugram this year reached the dreadful "severe plus" category, prompting the implementation of pollution-curbing restrictions and GRAP IV in Delhi. For consecutive days, the northern region remained engulfed in a blanket of smog due to the rise in stubble burning and pollution levels.
Amid the worsening air quality index (AQI) in Delhi and adjacent national capital region, the Supreme Court on Thursday refused to relax emergency measures listed under Stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to deal with air pollution. In its order, the apex court said the measures would continue till December 2.
An exception, however, was made for schools, which will allow them to follow the hybrid mode considering the learning difficulties faced by students with limited or no access to the internet.
Citing the second report submitted by the court commissioners, a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih slammed the authorities owing to the "abject failure" in implementing the GRAP IV curbs. The court advised that action should be taken against the officials who failed to implement the measures.
Commenting on the matter, the bench said, "We make it clear that all GRAP IV measures except the measures which are modified in respect of the schools will continue to operate till Monday. In the meantime, the Commission for Air Quality Management will hold a meeting and come out with the suggestion about moving from GRAP IV to GRAP III or GRAP II. We also make it clear that it is not necessary that all measures which are provided in GRAP IV should be dispensed with."
Action against officials for a "serious lapse" in ensuring the GRAP-IV curbs needed to be expedited, it added.
Furthermore, the top court also took cognisance of a media report related to Punjab where a land record officer and president of the Sangrur Block Patwari Union, openly admitted to advising farmers to burn stubble after 4 PM to avoid satellite detection.
"We are not on the correctness of this news but if it is correct it is very serious. The (Punjab) state officials cannot permit any farmer to take advantage of the fact that at present activities are being detected which take place during few hours of the day. The Punjab government should immediately issue instructions to all officers not to indulge in any such activities," the bench said.
The air quality index in Delhi and NCR regions such as Noida and Gurugram this year reached the dreadful "severe plus" category, prompting the implementation of pollution-curbing restrictions and GRAP IV in Delhi. For consecutive days, the northern region remained engulfed in a blanket of smog due to the rise in stubble burning and pollution levels.
In light of the current scenario, Delhi CM Atishi directed the schools to opt for online mode of teaching. Besides the schools, Delhi University (DU) and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have announced that they would hold online classes amid the worsening air quality in the capital.
First implemented in 2017, the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), was a a set of anti-air pollution measures followed in the capital and its vicinity according to the severity of the situation.
GRAP-4 restrictions specifically relate to restricting entry of trucks carrying non-essential goods into the national capital.
GRAP IV also prevents entry of all non-essential vehicles registered outside of Delhi, except EVs, CNF or BS-VI diesel vehicles to the capital city. Construction activities across the capital have also been suspended until further notice.
These measures include a ban on truck entry, except for those carrying essential items or using clean fuel like LNG, CNG, BS-VI diesel, or electric. Non-essential light commercial vehicles registered outside Delhi are also prohibited unless they are electric, CNG, or BS-VI diesel. Construction at public projects has been halted entirely.
Besides switching to online classes, under GRAP-IV, the authorities often urge workplaces to maintain a 50 percent workforce for public, municipal, and private offices while the remaining employees are directed to work from home.