New Delhi

Amid deteriorating air quality in the national capital, Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced on Wednesday that 50 per cent of the state government employees would work from home. 

Advertisment

The announcement came as Delhi’s average air quality index (AQI) continued to be in the “severe” category on Wednesday (Nov 20). Wednesday was the third consecutive day when the AQI of Delhi-NCR stood in the “severe” zone. 

While Delhi's average AQI stood at 423 at 7:00 a.m., Mundka was the most polluted area in the city (464), followed by Wazirpur and Alipur (462). The visibility at IGI Airport was 800 metres at7:00 a.m.

Also Read | Narendra Modi becomes first Indian PM to visit Guyana in 56 years

Advertisment

“To reduce pollution, the Delhi government decided to work from home in government offices. 50% of employees will work from home. For its implementation, a meeting will be held with the officials at 1 pm today in the Secretariat,” Rai tweeted in Hindi.

×

Earlier, the Delhi government announced staggered office timings for its offices and the MCD. 

Advertisment

The timings of Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) offices were fixed from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., while those of Delhi government offices were 10:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

The air quality in Delhi-NCR remains at "alarmingly high" levels, prompting concerns about health and safety.

Also Read | Delhi air pollution: AAP govt accuses centre of ignoring requests for artificial rain, asks PM to intervene

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), smog or shallow fog conditions would prevail throughout Wednesday.

On Tuesday (Nov 19), Delhi logged a 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) of 460 at 4:00 pm, lower than the record 494 clocked on Monday, but still in the “severe-plus” classification. 

Here are the AQI levels recorded in key locations:

Alipur: 490

Anand Lok: 504

Anand Parbat: 376

Anand Vihar: 591

Ashok Vihar Phase 1: 522

Ashok Vihar Phase 2: 527

Ashok Vihar Phases 3 and 4: 634

Delhi Cantt: 258

Dwarka Sector 11: 521

Dwarka Sector 23: 390

Greater Kailash II: 256

GTB Nagar: 617

An AQI between 401 and 450 is classified as “severe” and 451 and 500 as “severe-plus”. The scale is capped at 500.

In response to the worsening air quality, the Delhi Police conducted vehicle checks on Tuesday night to enforce Stage IV of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). This stage prohibits the operation of Delhi-registered BS-IV and older diesel-operated medium goods vehicles (MGVs) and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), except those involved in essential services.

(With inputs from agencies)