Delhi Air Pollution: To ensure low traffic congestion, government offices to follow staggered timings in national capital

As Delhi continued to struggle against high levels of air pollution and smog, disrupting life and passenger traffic, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) administration on Friday announced a slew of measures to protect the interests of the public. Delhi Chief Minister Atishi announced that government offices in the national capital will follow staggered timings to reduce traffic congestion and the associated pollution in the region. 

Timings for government offices in Delhi

As per the timings announced by the Delhi CM, MCD offices will operate from 8:30 am to 5 pm, central government offices from 9 am to 5:30 pm, and the Delhi government offices from 10 am to 6:30 pm.  

To reduce traffic congestion and associated pollution, Govt offices across Delhi will be following staggered timings:
1. Municipal Corporation of Delhi: 8:30am to 5pm
2. Central Govt: 9am to 5:30pm
3. Delhi Govt: 10am to 6:30pm

— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) November 15, 2024

The action is aimed at easing vehicular traffic in the city during peak hours, the Chief Minister said.

GRAP 3 Restrictions Imposed, No Discussion on 'Odd Even' Yet 

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced a public awareness campaign to promote car pooling and public transport activities, and said that no discussion has taken place yet on the 'odd even' scheme. The national capital administration has implemented special, odd-even restrictions on several occasions in the past in a bid to battle air pollution in the city. 

If the situation necessitates the imposition of GRAP 4 restrictions, the Delhi government will take measures such as artificial rain and special office timings, Rai added. 

Currently, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), a statutory body entrusted with the task of improving air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR) and its neighbouring states, has imposed the third phase of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) 3 measures in view of heightened levels of air pollution.

Some of the worst pollution levels in the country have been recorded in the national capital over the past few days. Delhi's overall Air Quality Index (AQI) reading stood at 411 on Friday, indicating 'severe' levels of air pollutants in the national capital.

From 'good' to 'severe', what various Air Quality Index (AQI) readings mean for you  

The index takes into account a host of factors, such as pollutant concentrations and their potential health impacts, to determine the quality of air.

The AQI system follows a colour-coded method that enables easy understanding of the degree of pollutants in the air quality in a given area.

There are six AQI categories, ranging from 'good' (0-50) to 'severe', under the AQI system.

These categories are defined on the basis of different ranges of AQI readings, starting from zero to 500. 

Here's a breakup of what the Air Quality Index (AQI) readings tell about the quality of air:

• 0-50 - Good
• 51-100 - Satisfactory
• 101-200 - Moderate
• 201-300 - Poor
• 301-400 - Very Poor
• 401-500 - Severe

Key points to know as Delhi implements GRAP 3 restrictions to tackle air pollution

Here are some of the key restrictions under the GRAP 3 scheme that took effect at 8 am on Friday:

• Ban on BS III diesel and petrol vehicles
• Essential supplies and ambulances exempted
• Diesel buses cannot enter the national capital from neighboring states
• BS VI buses, EVs, CNG vehicles exempted
• 84 teams to monitor compliance
• Violation to attract Rs 20,000 penalty
• Ban on construction and demolition activities
• Government construction projects, including roads, to continue