In view of the deteriorating air quality in the national capital, Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday announced that half of the employees in Delhi government offices will work from home.
“To reduce pollution, Delhi government has decided to implement work from home in government offices. 50% of the staff in government offices will work from home,” Rai wrote on X. “Implementation of the “provision will be discussed in a meeting with the officers later in the day,” he added.
Earlier, the Delhi government announced that the MCD and its offices will have different hours. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) offices were fixed from 8.30 am to 5 pm, and the Delhi government offices were from 10 am to 6.30 pm.
Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) continue to have “alarmingly high” air quality, raising worries about public health and safety. At 4 PM on Tuesday, Delhi’s 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) was 460, which was below the record 494 recorded on Monday but still fell into the “severe-plus” category. Severe AQIs fall between 401 and 450, whereas “severe-plus” AQIs fall between 451 and 500. The scale has a 500 maximum.
According to data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the city’s air quality index (AQI) has been severe for six of the past seven days. On Sunday it was 441; on Monday it was 417; on November 15, it was 396; on November 14, it was 424; and on November 13, it was 418.
In Stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan, or GRAP, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) suggested more stringent pollution control measures for the Delhi-NCR, which prohibit all construction and permit schools to cancel classes for the most students.
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