Delhi has stepped up its battle with rising AQI as fresh and more restrictive anti-pollution measures come into force from today amid ‘severe’ AQI in several places. From WFH to old car bans, check out the full list of new curbs here. Delhi residents woke up to a thick layer of smog blanketing the national capital on Thursday, December 18, as fresh and more restrictive anti-pollution measures come into force from today. (AP) Toxic haze enveloped Delhi-NCR on Thursday morning as new measures were introduced in addition to the GRAP Phase 4 restrictions on December 18 to curb pollution levels. As tougher anti-pollution measures come into effect from today amid ‘severe’ AQI in several places, let’s take a look at what is and isn’t allowed in the National Capital Region. Delhi Labor Minister Kapil Mishra on Wednesday announced that all government and private institutions in the city will partially function in physical mode. he instructed offices to work with 50% attendance the next day, with the remaining employees working from home. He announced the shift to working from home from Thursday and warned of action if the offices failed to comply with the directive. However, this rule comes with a few exceptions. This order excludes emergency and frontline workers. Those individuals who work in hospitals, in the fire brigade, in the implementation of air pollution control measures, in public and private health services, in transport and sanitation services and other essential services are exempted from the restrictive order. Kapil Mishra announced during the Wednesday presser that the construction workers expected to be affected by GRAP Phase 3 restrictions on construction activities will be compensated with ₹10,000. In particular, Phase 3 restrictions have been in place for the past 17 days. “Similarly, workers will be awarded compensation for the days that GRAP IV will remain in place. These benefits will be extended to workers registered with the government. The registration process is underway,” PTI quoted Delhi labor minister as saying. The Air Quality Management Commission has imposed several additional restrictions after Delhi registered the average air quality index (AQI) in ‘severe’ category for three consecutive days. At 7 am on Thursday, Delhi registered an AQI reading of 358, which falls in ‘very poor’ category. While this indicates a significant improvement in air quality, several areas across the country continue to grapple with ‘severe’ AQI, including Anand Vihar, Jahangirpuri, Vivek Vihar and Wazirpur, according to data from monitoring stations of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Delhi Government Mandates PUC Certificates: What Are They? Announcing several checks in its fight against air pollution, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said that vehicles without a PUC certificate will not be supplied with fuel at petrol pumps from Thursday. Pollution under control or PUC certificates are those issued after testing vehicle emissions at authorized centers across the national capital. Non-BS-VI complaint vehicles cannot enter national capital: The restrictive measures come after the Supreme Court modified its August 12 order on exemption for older vehicles and ended the protection against enforcement action to BS-3 and below vehicles in the national capital. “Trucks carrying construction materials to Delhi have also been banned… I appeal to people coming from outside Delhi to bring vehicles that meet Bharat Stage 6 (BS6) emission standards,” ANI quoted Manjinder Singh Sirsa as saying. To enforce the additional restrictions, the Delhi Traffic Police and the Transport Department’s enforcement teams will be deployed at petrol pumps and borders from Thursday. Manjinder Singh Sirsa said on Tuesday that when GRAP-IV is effective, vehicles carrying any kind of construction material will also be banned from entering Delhi. Schools in Delhi switched to hybrid mode from Monday and the Directorate of Education (DOE) issued orders to shift all primary classes to online mode from Tuesday. Get latest real-time updates Stay updated with latest trends, India, world and US news. Business NewsNewsIndiaDelhi shrouded in thick smog, AQI remains ‘very poor’: WFH, ban on old cars – Full list of new curbs effective today More