Construction activity resumes in Delhi-NCR as CAQM revokes GRAP-III restrictions

With air quality improving significantly in Delhi-NCR, even if it is in the ‘poor’ category, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has revoked Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which included a ban on all construction and demolition activities.

GRAP is invoked to curb or alleviate pollution levels once the air quality deteriorates to a certain threshold. The emergency measures range from banning burning of waste, banning the use of diesel generator sets to limiting the use of private vehicles.

The order issued by CAQM to revoke Stage III of GRAP said that AQI has been progressively improving from 346 (very poor) on November 11 to 294 (poor) on November 14, which is about 100 AQI points below the threshold for invoking GRAP Stage III actions. GRAP III is invoked when the AQI goes beyond 400 and reaches the severe category.

According to Central Pollution Control Board data, Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) stood at 253 at 12.10 pm on November 17. A day earlier, the 24-hour average AQI stood at 264 at 4 pm. AQI between 201 and 300 is considered poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 to 500 severe, and anything above that falls in the hazardous category. Air quality in the severe zone can affect healthy people and seriously harm those with existing illnesses. In early November, the AQI in Delhi-NCR was in the severe bracket, leading to the enforcement of stage III of the GRAP.

“There is a likelihood of sustaining the improvement in AQI… The Sub-Committee, accordingly, hereby decides to revoke with the immediate effect its order dated October 29, 2022, for invoking actions under Stage III (Severe air quality) of GRAP,” the CAQM’s November 14 order said.

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Ashish MIshra

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The measures under Stage III include a ban on construction and demolition activities, barring essential projects or those of national importance such as the railways and national highways, among others.

Developers and real estate experts said that after the CAQM order, construction activity has resumed in the region after a hiatus of around a fortnight and stressed that it will help construction projects in meeting deadlines and benefit homebuyers. They added, however, that it will take some more days before construction activities are back in full swing.

Manoj Gaur, president of the NCR chapter of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Association of India (CREDAI) and CMD of Gaurs Group, a Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh-headquartered developer with a focus on the region, said that even as activity has picked up, it is with an eye on controlling pollution.

“Construction has started in the region and necessary measures as directed by the relevant agencies are being taken by the member developers of CREDAI NCR. These measures include covering of construction material, water sprinkling, etc. Lifting of the ban does not immediately benefit the sector because restarting the construction activity from scratch and bringing it to full swing takes time, but in the longer run it will benefit buyers as the delivery of their homes will happen quickly,” Gaur told Moneycontrol.

Rohit Chopra of Southdelhiprime.com, an online real estate consultancy, said, “Construction activities were shut for around 10-15 days but it will translate into the delay of nearly a month in deadlines.”

He pointed out that it will take some days before construction activity is back to normal as a significant number of the workforce that was rendered idle at construction sites had gone to their villages or hometowns. “They are now being called back,” he said.

According to data from real estate company ANAROCK, over 400,000 homes are at different stages of construction in the Delhi-NCR region. The ban on all construction in the area for a longer period can delay the projects for three-four months.

Meanwhile, regular inspections and strict enforcement of dust control measures at construction and demolition sites and use of anti-smog guns will continue under Stage II of GRAP in Delhi-NCR. According to officials, authorities in Noida and Greater Noida had imposed penalties of nearly Rs 10 lakh till last week against offenders for violating GRAP guidelines.

“Stage I and II of GRAP are still underway so our strict vigil to curb dust pollution will continue and any offender will not be spared,” said a Noida Authority official, who asked not to be named.

A senior official of the Haryana Pollution Control Board said that restrictions under stage I and II of GRAP will continue, which means construction and demolition agencies will have to mandatorily carryout dust control measures at their sites. The official, however, refused to divulge the amount of penalties imposed on violators.

On September 27, CREDAI’s NCR chapter had written a letter to the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, highlighting the areas of concern that needed to be addressed under GRAP. It suggested that because RERA-registered projects are constructed in the interest of homebuyers, they approach the CAQM to consider these construction projects as public interest projects.