Delhi Announces Staggered Office Hours To Tackle Rising Air Pollution

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Friday announced staggered working hours for Delhi government and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) employees from November 15 to February 15, in response to the city’s worsening air pollution.

According to an official statement, Delhi government offices will now operate from 10 am to 6.30 pm, while MCD offices will function from 8.30 am to 5 pm. Currently, government offices work between 9.30 am and 6 pm, and MCD offices from 9 am to 5.30 pm.

The statement explained that with only a 30-minute difference between the two existing schedules, Delhi faces heavy traffic congestion during morning and evening rush hours, which in turn worsens air pollution.

“This decision has been taken as a precautionary measure to help curb the problem of pollution, ensuring that the pressure of vehicular traffic does not increase all at once on the roads, thereby distributing traffic more evenly and reducing pollution levels,” the statement said.

Chief Minister Gupta noted that the move followed a detailed review meeting with senior scientific officers from the Department of Environment regarding the city’s deteriorating air quality.

“During winter, concentrations of pollutants such as PM 2.5 and PM 10 rise well above normal standards, severely deteriorating air quality and posing serious risks to public health,” Gupta said.

She further explained that particulate matter (PM) of size 10 microns and smaller, and 2.5 microns or less, contain harmful chemical components. “After being inhaled through polluted air, these cause different health hazards,” the Chief Minister added.

By increasing the time gap between the office hours of the two institutions, the government hopes to reduce the number of vehicles on roads at any given time, thereby aiding pollution control efforts, Gupta said.

Since pollution levels are projected to spike between November 15, 2025, and February 15, 2026, the new winter timings have been introduced to distribute vehicular traffic more evenly and improve air quality across the capital, she explained.

The Chief Minister also directed officials to ensure strict implementation of the new schedule and to continuously monitor traffic and pollution levels. She expressed confidence that these steps would help lower pollution levels and provide much-needed relief to the residents of Delhi, the statement said.

With PTI inputs