Delhi: GRAP-3 guidelines invoked after air turns severe in national capital
GRAP-3 guidelines were imposed in Delhi on Saturday, as pollution levels rose in the city. While the overall AQI in the national capital was 390, several areas, like Anand Vihar, Chandni Chowk and Jahangirpuri recorded an AQI of 400 plus. The GRAP-3 measures call for ban on diesel vehicles, asks offices to function at 50% capacity and asks schools to follow hybrid mode up to Class 5.
New Delhi: Anti-pollution measures under GRAP-3 were imposed in Delhi on Saturday. The measures came into force after the national capital recorded 'severe air quality', with an AQI of 390. This AQI was recorded on early Saturday morning. This means that Delhi's air is in a "very poor" condition.
Measures taken to curb pollution
The curbs under GRAP-3, imposed by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), bring into effect certain measures to be followed, so that pollution levels in the city remain under check. There is a ban on non-essential construction and demolition work and stone crushing and mining activities.
Apart from that there is also a ban on plying old diesel vehicles on the roads of Delhi, which emit a lot of pollutants. Schools up to Class 5 are to be run in hybrid mode and all government offices are asked to function on 50% capacity, with the rest of the staff working from home. This applies to the entire Delhi-NCR.
Thick layer of smog in Delhi
Earlier in the day, the city woke up to a thick layer of smog. Visibility was considerably reduced and vehicles moved with their headlights on, even in the morning. The city recorded a minimum temperature of 11 degrees Celsius and the maximum was 23 degrees, said the weather department.
Meanwhile, the GRAP measures were enforced also because, it has been warned that the Air Quality in Delhi could slip further and reach "severe" levels in the coming days. Experts said that this was possible, if immediate measures were not taken to curb pollution. This is the reason that GRAP-3 has been implemented in the Delhi-NCR starting Saturday.
While the overall air quality in the city was 390, it crossed 400 in several areas. While Anand Vihar recorded an AQI of 435, in Burari, it was 415, in Chandni Chowk 419 and in Jahangirpuri 442.
The smog also led to a major accident on the Noida Expressway. Multiple vehicles collided with each other in the early morning. The accident was reported from the Eastern Peripheral Expressway or Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal Expressway. Though no deaths were reported, several people were injured in the incident.
Visuals from the accident site showed a car under a truck, while another one had climbed a divider. There is another damaged vehicle standing next to a truck. Investigations are on in the matter.