The Delhi government will provide construction workers with a monthly stipend of $5,000 during the period when construction activities are prohibited in the national capital, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Wednesday. Following an order from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), the Delhi government has prohibited construction and demolition activities under stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan.
“Construction activities have been stopped across Delhi in view of pollution. I have directed Labour Minister, Sh Manish Sisodia, to give ₹5000 pm as financial support to each construction worker during this period, when construction activities are not permitted,” Kejriwal said in a tweet.
The air quality in Delhi improved marginally on Wednesday morning due to better meteorological conditions, with the CAQM stating that there is no immediate need to implement curbs under the GRAP’s fourth stage.
At 9 a.m., the city’s AQI was 376. Forecasters predict that stronger winds on Thursday will improve air quality even more.
Meanwhile, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai has urged residents to work from home and take public transportation to help reduce vehicular pollution. Regarding the air pollution caused by stubble burning in Punjab, Rai stated that the central government bears responsibility as well.
“Central government gives government subsidies to control stubble burning but farmers want direct incentives,” Rai said. “Punjab’s stubble burning could have come down by 50% if the Centre cooperated.”
The GRAP is a collection of anti-air pollution measures implemented in Delhi and surrounding areas based on the severity of the situation. It categorises air quality in the Delhi-NCR into four stages: stage 1 is “poor” (AQI 201-300), stage 2 is “very poor” (AQI 301-400), stage 3 is “severe” (AQI 401-450), and stage 4 is “severe plus” (AQI above 450).