The Delhi Traffic Police has announced fresh restrictions under the revised Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) on vehicles entering the national capital from November 1, 2026 (Sunday) and urged motorists to check whether their vehicles meet the requirements before travelling to Delhi .
Notably, Bharat Stage (BS) norms are emission standards introduced by the Indian government to limit pollution caused by motor vehicles. Delhi recently recorded several days of ‘poor’ air quality. They set limits for pollutants such as carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), hydrocarbons (HC) and particulate matter (PM). The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) brings these measures into force to tackle pollution from sources such as road dust, vehicle emissions and open waste burning. The first stage focuses on reducing pollution at its source, with steps aimed at controlling dust from construction and roads, limiting vehicle emissions and checking industrial pollution.
The air quality index (AQI) was 90 at 9.05 am, down 132 points from 222 at 4 pm on Thursday, when it was in the poor category. India currently follows Bharat Stage VI (BS-VI) standards, which came into force across the country in April 2020. Stage-I is the first level of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), which is activated in Delhi-NCR when the AQI falls between 201 and 300, classified as ‘poor’.
In a post on X, the Delhi Traffic Police said the rules would apply to specific categories of vehicles as part of efforts to control pollution and improve air quality in the capital. However, overnight rain and thunderstorms brought some relief on Friday morning as the air quality improved to the ‘satisfactory’ category.
