Delhi Air Pollution: Capital’s Air Quality Reaches ’hazardous’ Levels

Delhi Air Pollution: With an overall air quality index (AQI) of 422 at 6 am on Wednesday, Delhi’s air pollution hit “severe” levels, suffocating citizens and shrouding the city in dense smog. According to Flightradar, visibility at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport decreased, resulting in 119 flights being delayed and six being canceled. Authorities have banned construction in the city and suspended physical school sessions due to the poisonous air. But compared to Tuesday’s assessment, the air quality index has decreased from 494 to 422.

Half of Delhi government workers would work from home

In response to the declining quality of the air in the nation’s capital, Environment Minister Gopal Rai however declared on Wednesday that half of the employees at government buildings in Delhi will work from home.

The Delhi government has chosen to allow employees to work from home at government offices in an effort to cut down on pollution. In government offices, half of the employees will work from home, Rai wrote on X.

“A meeting with the officers later in the day will be held to discuss the implementation of the provision,” he continued. The Delhi government had already said that the MCD and its offices would have different hours. Delhi government offices were open from 10 am to 6.30 pm, while the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) offices were open from 8.30 am to 5 pm.

Deadly Delhi Air Pollution

The Graded Response Action Plan’s (GRAP) Stage 4 pollution limitations indeed have been applied to Delhi-NCR. Truck access is prohibited as part of the measures, with the exception of those transporting necessities or utilizing fuels like LNG, CNG, BS-VI diesel, or electricity. Additionally, non-essential light commercial vehicles from outside of Delhi are prohibited unless they are powered by electricity, BS-VI diesel, or CNG. Public projects are no longer being built.

In a letter to the Center on Tuesday, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai indeed asked permission to create artificial rain. In the city to address the deteriorating air quality situation. To discuss the matter, he further requested that the Center meet with representatives from Union government departments and IIT Kanpur.

“North India is enveloped in layers of haze. The only way to eliminate smog is to create artificial rain. Speaking to the media on Tuesday, the minister declared, “This is a medical emergency.”

Condition of the Capital

With surface-level winds unlikely to strengthen and remove any of the accumulated toxins that have engulfed Delhi’s air for days. Weather analysts predicted that the city would not see any respite for at least the next three days.