Date – 24.11.2025
No – F. No.10 (39)VENV/2021/6539-6556
The Delhi government has directed all government and private offices in the city to operate with only 50% on-site staff, with the remaining employees required to work from home. The order, issued under Section 5 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 as part of GRAP Stage III emergency measures, comes amid severely deteriorating air quality, with the AQI crossing 400 in several parts of the national capital. This move aligns with the Lieutenant Governor’s recent approval of staggered office timings for Delhi government and Municipal Corporation establishments to ease peak-hour traffic and reduce vehicular emissions identified as a major contributor to pollution during such periods.
Under the new directions, all GNCTD government departments must ensure that no more than half their staff attend office physically, except where additional personnel are absolutely necessary for essential or emergency public services. Private offices have also been mandated to limit physical attendance to 50%, implement staggered work hours, enforce strict work-from-home arrangements, and minimise vehicle movement related to office commuting. The decision follows amendments introduced by the Commission for Air Quality Management after Supreme Court hearings in the M.C. Mehta air pollution matter, which revised the GRAP framework by shifting the 50% attendance restriction from Stage IV to Stage III for quicker and more effective intervention.
Essential services including hospitals, health facilities, fire services, public transport departments, electricity and water utilities, sanitation agencies, prisons, disaster-management authorities, and pollution-control enforcement bodies are exempt from the attendance cap. The order takes immediate effect and will remain active for the entire duration of GRAP Stage III. District Magistrates, DCPs, and local authorities have been asked to ensure strict compliance, with violations attracting penalties under Sections 15 and 16 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, which include imprisonment of up to five years, fines up to one lakh rupees, or both, in addition to other applicable legal provisions.
