The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Friday invoked Stage I restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in Delhi-NCR after the city recorded a “Poor” Air Quality Index (AQI).

Notably, Delhi’s AQI was recorded at 278 on Friday, and forecasts by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) predicted that the AQI would remain in the lower range of the “Poor” category on Saturday as well.

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The deterioration in air quality since the early morning of May 15 was attributed to the long-range transport of dust driven by strong winds—an episodic event. In response, GRAP Stage I restrictions were imposed with immediate effect, the CAQM stated in a press release.

“After comprehensively reviewing the overall air quality scenario and related aspects, the Sub-Committee resolved to closely monitor the situation for a day or more and conduct a review again on Saturday,” it added.

CAQM also noted that the 27-point action plan under Stage I of GRAP implementation will be enforced by various agencies, including the Pollution Control Boards of NCR states and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC).

“All the concerned agencies are required to take note of the prescribed actions and timelines outlined in the Commission’s comprehensive policy to curb air pollution in NCR. They must implement appropriate field-level actions, particularly dust mitigation measures,” the statement concluded.