Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) authorities implemented Stage 3 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across the National Capital Region (NCR) on Friday evening, November 6, 2026.
The emergency anti-pollution measures were enforced as Delhi’s 4:00 PM overall Air Quality Index (AQI) reached 382 (“Very Poor”), with several monitoring stations breaching the 400-mark into the “Severe” category.
The GRAP-3 framework introduces widespread restrictions on construction and demolition activities, bans older polluting vehicles, and permits hybrid learning models for primary schools across Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurugram, and Faridabad.
Comprehensive Ban on Construction & Demolition Activities
Under Stage 3 protocols, non-essential construction and demolition (C&D) operations stand immediately suspended across Delhi-NCR:
- Banned Operations: Excavation, filling, boring, drilling, piling, demolition, masonry, road construction, tile/stone cutting, grinding, painting, polishing, varnishing, and major welding/gas-cutting activities are strictly prohibited.
- Material Movement Limits: Transfer, loading, and unloading of dust-generating material—such as cement, sand, bricks, fly ash, and crushed stone—as well as waste transport on unpaved roads, are banned.
- Essential Service Exemptions: Critical infrastructure projects are exempted, including Metro rail, Indian Railways, national security and defense installations, airports, ISBTs, hospitals, highway flyovers, power transmission, telecommunications, sewage treatment plants, and public water supply works.
Vehicle Curbs, Hybrid Schooling, and WFH Directives
To reduce surface emissions, state governments across NCR have enforced operational restrictions:
- Light Motor Vehicle (LMV) Restrictions: BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel four-wheelers are banned from plying in Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Ghaziabad, and Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida). Vehicles adapted for persons with disabilities remain exempt.
- Goods Carrier Restrictions: Medium Goods Vehicles (MGVs) and Light Goods Vehicles (LGVs) below BS-VI standards registered outside Delhi are barred from entering the capital.
- Hybrid Classes for Primary Schools: Schools up to Class 5 in Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, and Gautam Buddha Nagar must mandatorily offer hybrid learning (physical and online options), giving parents the choice of home learning.
- 50% Office Capacity Rule: State governments across NCR and the Delhi Administration will determine whether public, municipal, and private corporate offices operate at 50% staff capacity, with remaining employees working from home (WFH).
