New Delhi, Jan. 21 -- The Delhi government on Wednesday decided to double the existing parking charges at authorised parking sites to discourage use of private vehicles when GRAP Stage III- 'Severe' Air Quality (AQI between 401-450) and GRAP Stage IV- 'Severe +' Air Quality (AQI above 450) are invoked.

The decision comes to counter the situation of air pollution in the national capital, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) level at 324 at 7 pm.

According to the notification issued on January 8, the parking spaces owned and managed by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) are exempted from the doubling of charges.

As per the notification, a comprehensive study on air pollution and greenhouse gases 2015, conducted by IIT Kanpur, said that ...