Will Delhi schools open on Friday as air quality worsens? , Latest News India

The Delhi government on Thursday announced that primary schools (up to Class 5) in the national capital will switch to online classes because of rising pollution levels in the city.

The Directorate of Education (DoE) has asked the heads of all government, private, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) schools to discontinue offline classes for children up to Class 5.

“All the Heads of Govt., Govt. Aided and Unaided Private Recognized Schools of Directorate of Education (DoE), MCD, NDMC & DCB in Delhi are directed to discontinue physical classes in schools for children up to Class V. Heads of Schools are hereby directed to ensure classes in online mode for the students of these classes till further orders,” an order issued by the Delhi government’s Directorate of Education said.

The announcement comes hours after the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) announced the implementation of the third stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which aims to reduce air pollution in Delhi. The GRAP Stage III curbs include a ban on construction. and demolition activities and the plying of BS-lll petrol and BS-IV diesel light motor vehicles. The restrictions will come into force on Friday.

Worsening air quality

The capital’s air quality remained in the “severe” category for a second consecutive day on Thursday. The city’s 24-hour Air Quality Index (AQI), recorded at 4 pm every day, stood at 424, up from 418 the previous day.

GRAP for the National Capital Region (NCR) is classified under four different stages of adverse air quality in Delhi: Stage I — ‘poor’ (AQI 201-300); Stage II — ‘very poor’ (AQI 301-400); Stage III — ‘severe’ (AQI 401-450); and Stage IV — ‘severe plus’ (AQI >450).