Delhi's Air Quality Nears "Very Poor" Category, GRAP-2 Anti-Pollution Measures Invoked

As the air quality in Delhi continues to deteriorate ahead of Diwali 2025, the Air Quality Management panel has invoked GRAP-2, an advanced anti-pollution measure, in a bid to control the pollution levels. According to the panel, the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi has shown an increasing trend since morning and has been recorded as 296 at 4:00 PM, placing it in the "poor" range. With the forecast predicting further deterioration of AQI in the coming days, the authorities are scrambling to implement measures to prevent the air quality from plummeting to the "very poor" category.

Key Takeaways:

The AQI of Delhi has been recorded as 296 at 4:00 PM, placing it in the "poor" range, with an increasing trend observed since morning.
The forecast by IMD/IITM predicts further deterioration of AQI in the coming days, which could lead to air quality being classified as "very poor."
GRAP-2 is an advanced stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) for controlling air pollution, implemented when air quality falls in the "very poor" category.
The Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) for Delhi-NCR is divided into four stages of air quality: Stage 1 for "poor" AQI, Stage 2 for "very poor" AQI, Stage 3 for "severe" AQI, and Stage 4 for "severe plus" AQI.
GRAP-2 is invoked when the AQI falls in the "very poor" category, which is classified as an AQI between 301 and 400.

Statistics:

AQI of Delhi at 4:00 PM: 296
AQI forecast by IMD/IITM: further deterioration predicted
GRAP-2 stage: invoked when air quality falls in the "very poor" category (AQI 301-400)

Sources:

Air Quality Management panel
Indian Meteorological Department (IMD)
Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM)