CAQM Invokes GRAP Stage-I in Delhi-NCR as AQI Reaches 245

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) brought Stage-I of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) into force across the whole of the National Capital Region with immediate effect on 21 October 2026, after the air over Delhi slipped into the poor band.

The readings that triggered it

According to the daily bulletin of the Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi's daily average Air Quality Index stood at 244 at 2 PM and climbed further to 245 by 4 PM. Both readings fall in the poor category, which covers an AQI from 201 to 300. The CAQM Sub-Committee on GRAP met the same day, took stock of the readings and of the weather and air quality forecasts prepared by the India Meteorological Department and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, and decided to put the first stage of the plan into effect.

What Stage-I requires

All 25 action points listed under Stage-I now apply in the entire NCR. Among the main ones:

• Dust control at construction and demolition sites, with covered storage and covered transport of material and waste; projects on a plot of 500 square metres or more must be registered on the state web portal to be allowed to work
• Regular lifting of municipal, construction, industrial and hazardous waste, periodic mechanised road sweeping and water sprinkling, and heavier use of anti-smog guns on road works
• A strict ban on the open burning of biomass and municipal solid waste, and vigil against fires at landfill sites
• Enforcement of pollution-under-control norms, the impounding of visibly polluting vehicles, the ban on overaged diesel and petrol vehicles, and the diversion of trucks not bound for Delhi through the Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways
• Regulated use of diesel generator sets, and a ban on coal and firewood in tandoors at hotels, restaurants and open eateries
• More buses, metro and regional rapid transit services, with differential fares to spread travel away from peak hours

What citizens are asked to do

The Citizens Charter for Stage-I asks residents to check the AQI on the SAMEER app and the stage of the GRAP in force on the Commission's website, keep vehicle engines tuned and PUC certificates current, avoid idling at red lights, prefer public transport or car pooling, segregate waste, avoid firecrackers, and report polluting activity through the 311 app, the Green Delhi app or SAMEER.

Why it matters

The GRAP is a graded plan: as the air worsens, successive stages add sharper curbs, and Stage-I is the first and mildest of them, meant to stop the air from sliding further. The Sub-Committee said it would keep watching the readings and review the position from time to time.