Delhi Pollution Crisis: Rs 10,000 aid for workers, 50% WFH in government and private offices

Delhi Pollution: The government has taken strict action on pollution in Delhi-NCR, making 50% work from home mandatory for government and private offices. It has announced an assistance of ₹10,000 for labourers affected by the halt in construction work.

The Delhi government has taken two major decisions after the implementation of Stage-4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) due to rising air pollution in Delhi-NCR. To control the increasing pollution, work from home has been made mandatory for 50% of employees in government and private offices, and a compensation of ₹10,000 has been announced for labourers to cover their loss of work. This order will be effective from December 18. Health, jail, public transport, electricity, and other essential services have been exempted from this rule.

₹10,000 Assistance for Labourers

Under GRAP restrictions, all construction activities in Delhi have been completely halted. Due to this, affected registered construction labourers will be given compensation of ₹10,000 to cover their loss of work. Labour Minister Kapil Mishra announced this at a press conference. This amount will be given for the 16 days of halt during GRAP-3, while a separate calculation will be made for the GRAP-4 period. The registration portal is still open, allowing more labourers to benefit.

Thick Layer of Smog in Delhi

On Wednesday morning, Delhi's AQI was recorded at 328, which falls under the 'very poor' category. Although there has been a slight improvement compared to the previous days, a thick layer of smog persisted in many areas. Visibility was affected due to the haze in areas like India Gate, Anand Vihar, IGI Airport, and ITO. According to CPCB, Bawana recorded the worst AQI at 376, while more than 30 stations recorded 'very poor' levels.

Strictness on Vehicles

The government has also increased strictness on vehicles for pollution control, including not providing fuel to vehicles without a valid PUC and restrictions on old vehicles. Experts say that pollutants are getting trapped due to cold weather and low wind speed, which is making the situation severe. The government has appealed to citizens to adopt carpooling and avoid unnecessary outings.