India, Dec. 16 -- Even as Gurugram's air quality worsened to a "very poor" AQI of 345 on Monday, schools across the district continued to function in physical mode, raising concerns among parents. Despite the enforcement of Stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan (Grap), no directive has been issued by the Gurugram district commissioner to shift classes online. On Sunday, the AQI was at a "poor" 291 at 4pm, according to the daily national bulletin by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Under the CAQM framework, Grap measures serve as guidelines, with the authority to enforce school closures or shift to hybrid or online classes resting with district or state administrations. In Gurugram, such binding orders for both government ...