Haryana: All schools in Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Jhajjar shut till Nov 17, check details

New Delhi, Nov 14: Haryana government on Sunday decided to close all the schools in Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat and Jhajjar till November 17, owing to rising air pollution.

Apart from closing schools, the Haryana government has asked government departments and private offices to shift to work-from-home mode.

"The order for closure of schools, restriction on construction activities, advice to govt and private offices for adopting work from home mode will be applicable in four districts around NCT Delhi -- Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat and Jhajjar," said Haryana government.

"No trash burning by Municipal bodies will be allowed and stubble burning will be prohibited. No manual sweeping of roads will e allowed," the government said in a statement.

"Vehicles older than 10/15 years (Diesel/Petrol respectively) shall be strictly checked with regard to emissions and impounded accordingly," an official spokesperson added.

He said there will be a complete ban on all types of construction and development activities. Mechanized stone crushers and hot mix plants used in construction activities shall be closed.

No trash burning by municipal bodies shall be allowed, he further said. Stubble burning shall be prohibited and no manual sweeping of roads shall be allowed, he added. He said water sprinkling on roads will be done to control dust pollution.

The deputy commissioners will constitute joint inspection teams for enforcing the above directions and shall ensure extensive checking, monitoring and action against the violators in accordance with law issued from time to time by the Haryana government.

He said these guidelines will come into force with immediate effect and remain operational till November 17, 2021. Strict compliance of the same directions be ensured by all concerned, the spokesman said.

On Saturday, Delhi government also announced various emergency measures, including closure of schools for a week, ban on construction activities and work from home for government employees, to deal with the pollution crisis faced by the city.

Terming the rise in air pollution in Delhi-NCR an "emergency" situation, the Supreme Court asked the Centre and the Delhi government on Saturday to take immediate measures to improve the air quality and suggested steps such as stopping vehicles and clamping a lockdown in the national capital.

Kejriwal said the schools will remain closed for one week from Monday in view of high air pollution levels. Work from home will be implemented concerning government offices and a separate advisory on it will be issued for private offices, he said.

Construction activities will be prohibited in Delhi from November 14 to 17.

The chief minister blamed stubble burning in neighbouring states for the toxic air in Delhi and called upon all stakeholders to work together to combat it.