Delhi’s air quality drops; Stage 3 restrictions reimpose 

New Delhi: Residents of Delhi on Friday morning once again witnessed a thick smog blanketing the national capital, and the visibility turned poor. Besides this, the air quality of the city once again deteriorated into the ‘severe’ category. As per the data issued by the Central Pollution Control Board, the capital’s AQI was recorded at 409 at 7 am, which was 299 yesterday at the same time.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good,’ 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory,’ 101 and 200 ‘moderate,’ 201 and 300 ‘poor,’ 301 and 400 ‘very poor,’ and 401 and 500 ‘severe.’

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Stage 3 curbs under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) have been once again imposed in the city due to the increase in the pollution levels by the Commission for Air Quality Management. As per the conditions in Stage 3, non-essential construction work will remain suspended. Schools up to class V have been shifted to hybrid mode. Parents and children can opt for online classes. Under this measurement, BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel cars (4-wheelers) have been banned from plighting in Delhi; only disabled persons are exempted.

With the heavy smog and poor visibility, several flights and trains have been cancelled. IndiGo, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) at 5:04 am, advised passengers to check flight status before heading to the airport. As per the Indian Railways, several trains are running late due to smog in Delhi and other regions of northern India.