New Delhi (India): The Centre’s air quality monitoring panel announced on Friday that it has revoked the Stage III measures of the revised Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) following significant improvements in Delhi’s air quality.
Favorable weather conditions, including consistent rainfall, have helped lower the Air Quality Index (AQI) to 334 as of 7 PM on December 27.
“Delhi’s air quality has shifted from the ‘severe’ category to the ‘poor’ range. As a result, measures under Stage III, which were implemented earlier, are now being withdrawn,” said the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in NCR and adjoining areas in an official statement.
However, the CAQM confirmed that measures under Stages I and II of GRAP would remain in place to maintain the progress in air quality. “We are taking every precaution to ensure AQI levels do not deteriorate. Vigilance and strict implementation of Stage I and II measures will continue,” Agrawal added.
The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) is a set of emergency measures implemented in Delhi-NCR based on the severity of the Air Quality Index (AQI). The Supreme Court had previously mandated that Stage III measures should be triggered if AQI exceeds 350, with Stage IV measures being activated if AQI exceeds 400. Stage III and Stage IV measures were put in place on December 16 after AQI levels reached 401, but Stage IV measures were lifted on December 24 as the situation began to improve.
“Thanks to continuous rain and favorable weather, the AQI is expected to stay within the ‘poor’ category (200-300) over the next few days,” the Sub-Committee noted.
Despite the rollback of Stage III measures, the CAQM emphasized that construction and industrial activities, which were suspended due to violations, will remain halted unless specifically permitted.
Citizens have been encouraged to adhere to GRAP’s Citizen Charter to help sustain the air quality improvements. The panel assured that it would continue to monitor the air quality situation closely, stating, “We are keeping a watchful eye on air quality and will take additional measures if necessary.”