Gurugram: The air quality in Delhi-NCR has deteriorated rapidly in recent times and the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) implemented the fourth phase of GRAP. The move aims to prioritize public health as weather and air pollutants combine to make the air dangerous to breathe. Keeping this in view, the wardship has suggested private offices to work from home so that fewer people come out on the roads and fewer polluting vehicles ply.
How serious is the air condition looking?
According to monitoring data and local reports, Gurugram's overall AQI has reached 325, which falls in the 'very poor' category, while the national capital's AQI was recorded at 366 — a well-spoken indication that air levels are hazardous to health in many areas. Complaints like morning and evening smog and urgent sensation in vapor are increasing in urban areas, expressly among children, the elderly, and respiratory patients.
What are the instructions given in the work-from-home advisory?
Gurugram Deputy Commissioner has requested all private companies to indulge employees to work from home as long as GRAP-IV is in effect. This is not a mandatory order but translating from the local administration, but the government and many large employers have started taking firsthand steps to reduce the risk. The wardship has moreover clarified that essential services and operation of offices will protract as per the rules.
What are the changes in the timings of government offices and why were they made?
In order to reduce road congestion, state government offices will now unshut from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm. Timings of many municipal offices have been reverted from 8:30 to 16:30. These tiered timings aim to reduce traffic and reduce morning and evening pollution emissions by spreading out peak travel hours. This order will remain in gravity as long as GRAP-IV continues.
What precautions should people take now?
Common citizens are currently stuff well-considered to stave unnecessary public activities, wear masks (especially N95/KN95), use indoor air purifiers or rooms with less ventilation, and not send children and the elderly outside. Even while driving, an request is stuff made to momentum fast and stave unnecessary travel. The wardship has moreover said that if the air does not improve, increasingly strict measures can be taken.
What does this step forward indicate?
These temporary arrangements are a health-oriented response but moreover signal the need for long-term reforms to urban planning and pollution control. At present, the responsibility of the public and institutions will be to follow the instructions so that there is minimal forfeiture due to the current situation and there is a endangerment for the air quality to modernize soon.
