The Delhi government will prohibit vehicles registered outside the national capital that do not comply with BS-VI emission standards from entering the city from November 1st as part of a series of measures to address winter pollution.

Electric vehicles will be exempt from additional parking charges, while the Delhi government will publicise the entry restriction in advance, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said. CNG vehicles will not be covered by the separate BS-IV restriction, he said. The government did not specify when the restriction would end.

BS (I-VI) refers to the emission standards applicable to vehicles, with BS-VI vehicles complying with the most stringent standards.

The measures include restrictions on older vehicles, construction and demolition activity, higher parking charges, staggered office timings and tighter enforcement.

Parking charges at authorised parking sites will be doubled from November 1st to February 28th to discourage private vehicle use, while electric vehicles will be exempt from the additional charges. Parking spaces owned and managed by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation will be excluded from the increase.

According to the Decision Support System of the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), transport contributes to PM2.5 emissions in Delhi, with its share rising to 20% or more during winter.

Dust-generating demolition activity and outdoor civil construction work at construction sites will be prohibited from November 1st to December 10th. From December 10th to January 20th, there will be a complete ban on construction and demolition activities, including indoor work, officials said.

The measures were discussed at an action-based planning meeting on pollution in Delhi and the NCR chaired by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav and attended by Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, PWD Minister Parvesh Verma and Sirsa.

The government has registered 723 construction sites on its monitoring system, with pollution-control measures monitored through an AI-enabled automated system. Sirsa said fewer than 2-3% of sites had reported violations. According to a government presentation, 600 of the 723 registered sites have been equipped with web cameras, while 100% camera coverage of sites registered on the construction and demolition portal is targeted by the end of October.

Office timings will be staggered from November 1st to February 28th, with MCD offices operating from 8:30 am to 5 pm and Delhi government offices from 10 am to 6:30 pm. Government and private offices will reduce their physical workforce by 50%, with half of the staff working from home, the government said.

The "No PUC, No Fuel" rule will be strengthened and implemented at all 500 ANPR-equipped petrol pumps in Delhi, Sirsa said. A public awareness campaign will be held in October, while PUC (pollution under control) centres will be upgraded in November.

Enforcement against end-of-life (ELV) vehicles will also be strengthened through ANPR-based systems, while the fitness of ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) cameras will be checked.

Around 250,000 vehicles will undergo fitness checks through three automated testing stations. The three stations currently have a combined capacity to test 244,000 commercial vehicles annually.

On public transport, Sirsa said Delhi currently has 5,088 electric buses, with another 150 to be added to the fleet. Delhi's total bus fleet has reached 6,840, while last-mile connectivity is available at all 228 Metro stations.

The government has set a target of increasing average daily Metro ridership from 6.5 million to 7.2 million and Delhi Transport ridership from 3.7 million to 4.2 million. The government is also working on high-AQI (air quality index) and traffic-congestion hotspots. Sirsa said 42 of the 62 identified pollution hotspots had been brought under control. Action plans have been prepared for each hotspot covering a 3-kilometre radius, with district-level officials monitoring pollution sources and mitigation measures.

Action is also being taken against polluting industries, particularly units involved in tyre and e-waste burning. Sirsa said industries violating pollution-control norms would face action and that buildings found to be involved in polluting activities could be sealed.

Between December 1st, 2025 and September 26th, 2026, action had been taken against around 115,000 units, of which 2,283 had been sealed, Sirsa said.

The government has also increased the air-quality monitoring network under the Commission for Air Quality Management from 47 to 60 stations. Around 80% of complaints received through the 311 app have been redressed, Sirsa said.

The government will deploy 334 enforcement teams, comprising 256 ward teams and 78 Delhi Pollution Control Committee teams, supported by PTZ cameras and geo-tagged, time-stamped monitoring. An AI-enabled command and control centre will support integrated monitoring.

Government departments will also be held accountable if pollution is found on their properties, around their offices, at transport facilities or at bus stands, Sirsa said.

The government is continuing to work with neighbouring NCR states on pollution-control measures, while studies and monitoring systems are being used to identify local pollution sources.

Sirsa said the government was also working with IIT Kanpur on a pollution study, while micro-sensors and a monitoring "supersite" are being developed with technical institutions to identify pollution sources at a more local level.

Sirsa said Delhi's air pollution needs to be considered in the context of the wider NCR airshed. Around 30% of pollution is generated within the NCT of Delhi, while approximately 60-65% comes from or is influenced by surrounding areas, according to the government's air pollution mitigation assessment.