As of early Thursday morning, the AQI at key locations like Anand Vihar, Bawana, Dwarka Sector 8, and Jahangirpuri surpassed 400, entering the "severe" category.

Delhi sees a major spike in air pollution every winter due to several factors, including the burning of farm waste in the adjoining states of Haryana and Punjab.

Delhi's air quality remains severe, prompting GRAP-III restrictions under which stringent ban will be put in place on construction and demolition activities among others.

Delhi air quality plummets to alarming levels every year in the winter. The air quality in the capital remains in the 'severe' category prompting the authorities to impose the third stage of GRAP.

The GRAP 3 curbs in Delhi include ban on demolition and construction activities, and entry of certain vehicles inside Delhi-NCR, among other curbs, to prevent further deterioration of air quality.

The action is part of measures to be undertaken as part of the invocation of GRAP stage III by the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) and will come into effect starting 8 am on Friday. Delhi’s 24-hour average air quality on Thursday recorded at 4 pm was 424 AQI, in the ‘severe’ category.

The tighter rule is aimed to curb pollution emnating from different sources as the AQI reached 418 on Thursday.

Delhi Metro on Thursday announced 20 extra trips in view of the implementation of GRAP-III amid rising pollution in Delhi-NCR.

Delhi NCR will be under GRAP 3 restrictions starting tomorrow at 8 am due to severe air quality. Construction, demolition, and non-essential mining will be halted. Restrictions on interstate buses and a shift to virtual learning for primary schools are also included.

The decision to invoke the third stage of GRAP was announced by Commission for Air Quality Management, hours after Delhi government claimed that air quality in the city could improve without the implementation of the response.