Overview
- The Bombay High Court rejected the Ethiopian volcanic-ash explanation, formed a five-member inspection committee, and sought action reports from the BMC and MPCB on construction dust controls.
- Mumbai’s civic body issued stop-work notices to 53 construction sites, ordered always-on AQI sensors with checks by flying squads, and launched a road dust-cleaning drive.
- Delhi’s overall AQI reached 384 with multiple stations in the ‘severe’ band, a day after the air-quality panel withdrew GRAP Stage III while keeping Stages I and II in force.
- Navi Mumbai’s municipal chief directed on-ground crackdowns, including week-long shutdowns for sites violating dust norms, inspections of quarries and RMC plants, and action against garbage burning.
- Meteorologists cited temperature inversion and low wind speeds alongside construction and vehicular emissions as key drivers, as a new 10-year analysis found no major Indian metro met ‘good’ AQI at any point since 2015.