Alarming levels of pollution in the National Capital Region have led the Commission for Air Quality Monitoring (CAQM) to issue directions to Delhi and neighbouring states to shut all educational institutions until further notice.

This could affect children once again, as schools had been shut earlier for a long time due to the pandemic, due to fear of children contracting Covid-19. Many schools and colleges had only just begun to open. The kids are now back to online-learning modes as during the pandemic-induced restriction period.

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The Supreme Court had sought to know from all pollution-controlling bodies the steps taken to mitigate the pollution crisis in Delhi-NCR. The apex court is slated to hear the matter again on Wednesday. The CAQM order will also be submitted to the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

Delhi’s pollution levels have skyrocketed since Diwali when firecrackers were freely burnt in NCR despite a ban. The problem is said to have been further aggravated with stubble burning from the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana contributing to about 40% of the pollution right after Diwali. The Delhi government had earlier proposed a complete lockdown for some time to curb pollution, provided other NCR states, too, implemented such a step. A complete pollution lockdown, however, has not been enforced yet, but the Delhi government said that they were ready to lock down the city on weekends if the need arose.

The decision was taken after the November 16 emergency meeting on the Delhi-NCR pollution crisis attended by central pollution control authorities and officials from Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Rajasthan.

Further, all NCR states have been told to encourage implementing a work-from-home policy for 50% of the staff. “NCR state governments shall encourage at least 50% of the staff working in private establishments in NCR to work from home till November 21, 2021, subject to further review,” the order read.

To control vehicle emissions, the NCR states and the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) have been ordered to bar entry of trucks into Delhi, except those carrying essential commodities, till November 21, 2021.

Orders have been issued to stop construction and demolition activities till November 21. Exceptions to this order will be:

(a) Railway services/ railway stations
(b) Metro Rail Corporation services, including stations
(c) Airports and Inter State Bus Terminals (ISBTs)
(d) National security and defence-related activities projects of national importance

States have been told to file a compliance report before the commission by November 22.

Delhi’s AQI was 379 on Wednesday morning. The AQI in Delhi was around 471 on November 12, the worst this season so far.

AQI between the range of 51 and 100 is considered as ‘satisfactory’, 101-200 is ‘moderate’, 201-300 falls under the category of ‘poor’. While 300-400 is considered as ‘very poor’, levels between 401-500 fall under the ‘hazardous’ category.