The measures come as India’s top court is deliberating whether New Delhi should go into a lockdown as a blanket of thick, grey smog continued to surround the city, particularly in the mornings.
The panel issued the guidelines on Tuesday night in an attempt to stem the pollution and to show residents that the government was taking action to control an environmental crisis that has been plaguing the capital for years.
Besides the closure of schools, the Commission for Air Quality Management ordered a stop to construction activities until 21 November and banned trucks carrying non-essential goods. The panel also directed the states to “encourage” work from home for half of the employees in all private offices.
Despite some improvement in New Delhi air over the past two days, readings of dangerous particles on Wednesday were still as high as seven times the safe level, climbing above 300 micrograms per cubic metre in some parts of the city. The World Health...