With the onset of the stubble burning and winter season in Delhi from October 1, the centre is prepared to implement the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to curb pollution in the Delhi-NCR region. The GRAP is a set of measures that are implemented in four different stages depending on the levels of air pollution.
The measures include several restrictions, encompassing construction activities, hotel industry, vehicular traffic, and industrial emissions etc. The GRAP underwent crucial changes earlier this year in July as stricter regulatory measures were introduced.
Under the GRAP, the Air Quality Index of Delhi NCR in the range of 201-300 will be labeled as ‘poor’ and will hence fall under the Stage 1 of the restrictions. Similarly, the AQI level between 301-400 and 401-450 will be considered as ‘very poor’ and ‘severe’ and will fall under the Stage 2 and Stage 3 categories, respectively. And at last, the ‘severe+’ category restrictions will be triggered above the 450 AQI mark.
The AQI in Delhi on Sunday at the time of filing this report is 162, which is unhealthy but hasn’t reached the Stage 1 of the GRAP yet. If the pollution level increases in the coming days, the vehicles plying on the roads of Delhi/NCR will be subject to strict restrictions. Here we take a look at the different types of mobility restrictions in different stages under the GRAP.
Stage 1 – During the stage 1, there will be strict vigilance and enforcement of PUC norms with no tolerance for visible emissions. Furthermore, overaged trucks won’t be allowed entry into Delhi.
Stage 2 – If the pollution increases further and falls under the Stage 2 category, traffic police/police personnel will be deployed on identified vulnerable areas to ensure smooth flow of traffic.
Stage 3 – Come the third stage of GRAP, all NCR state governments will ban the plying of BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel light motor four-wheelers in the Delhi-NCR region.
Stage 4 – During the ‘severe+’ AQI stage, the entries of all trucks, light commercial vehicles (registered outside Delhi) will be completely banned in Delhi, except for the ones carrying essential goods or those running on LNG/CNG or electric batteries. Similarly, all Delhi-registered, diesel-powered MGVs, HGVs will be banned on Delhi roads, except if they are carrying essential commodities.
