Air pollution: Delhi ministers order 50% of staff to work from home
Listen to Course
0:00
0:00
EN: The verb 'tell' often takes the pattern 'tell someone to do something', which functions as an order, instruction, or request. Here, 'Half of Their Staff' is the object, and 'to Work from Home' is the object complement (infinitive clause).
The manager told us to submit the report before Friday.
EN: The conjunction 'as' here indicates a simultaneous change or progression, meaning 'while' or 'at the same time that'. It introduces an adverbial clause of time/manner ('as Smog Gets Worse'). In news headlines, the simple present tense ('Gets') is conventionally used instead of continuous tenses to describe ongoing events.
As temperatures rise, more people stay indoors.
EN: Every winter, the National Capital Region of Delhi faces hazardous air pollution (smog) caused by vehicle emissions, industrial pollution, cool weather that traps smoke, and crop stubble burning in surrounding states. The government frequently enforces emergency protocols like odd-even vehicle schemes, school closures, and 'work from home' directives for government offices to lower vehicle counts.
EN: The structure 'order + object + to-infinitive' is used to express commanding or instructing someone to perform an action.
The manager ordered the team to submit the reports before noon.
EN: The prepositional phrase 'because of + noun/noun phrase' is used to show reason or cause. Unlike 'because', which introduces a full clause (subject + verb), 'because of' must be followed by a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase.
The flight was canceled because of bad weather.
EN: Delhi frequently experiences hazardous smog and high Air Quality Index (AQI) levels during early winter. To curb vehicular emissions, government authorities often introduce emergency policies such as remote work mandates, odd-even driving schemes, and construction bans.
EN: The present perfect tense ('has covered') is formed with 'have/has' + past participle. It indicates an action that happened in the past and has direct relevance or visible results in the present.
Heavy snow has blocked the main road.
EN: The conjunction 'that' introduces a noun clause functioning as the direct object of the verb 'hope', expressing what the officials are hoping for.
Doctors hope that the patient will recover quickly.
EN: In many large global capitals like Delhi, severe winter smog often prompts emergency responses such as odd-even vehicle rotation, encouraging telecommuting (work-from-home), or closing schools to reduce vehicular emissions and public exposure.
EN: A non-defining relative clause introduced by ', which' is used here to add extra information about the entire preceding clause or the number mentioned. The pronoun 'which' acts as the subject of the clause, referring back to the fact that the index reached 403.
The factory reduced its emissions by 30%, which helped clear the city's air.
EN: The structure 'place + object + in + category' means to classify or categorize someone or something into a specific group or level.
His test scores placed him in the top percentile of applicants.
EN: The Air Quality Index (AQI) in India is categorized into six bands: Good (0–50), Satisfactory (51–100), Moderate (101–200), Poor (201–300), Very Poor (301–400), and Severe (401–500). Readings above 400 are considered hazardous, affecting healthy people and severely impacting those with existing respiratory conditions.
EN: The past perfect tense ('had + past participle') is used here with the preposition 'by' to show that an action was completed before a specific point in the past ('by four in the afternoon').
By noon, the rain had stopped completely.
EN: The coordinating conjunction 'but' links two independent clauses with contrasting ideas. Notice the comma preceding 'but' when connecting two complete clauses.
He studied hard for the test, but he was still nervous.
EN: In India's National Air Quality Index (AQI), ratings are classified into specific bands: 'Good' (0-50), 'Satisfactory' (51-100), 'Moderate' (101-200), 'Poor' (201-300), 'Very Poor' (301-400), and 'Severe' (401-500). Thus, quotation marks are used around 'very poor' because it represents an official AQI classification category.
EN: Passive Voice in Past Simple ('were + past participle'): The passive voice is used when the focus is on the action or the result (the directives being issued) rather than who performed it. The agent is introduced using the preposition 'by'.
The new guidelines were introduced by the school principal yesterday.
EN: Official Titles as Appositives/Pre-modifiers: Job titles such as 'Environment Minister' and 'Transport Minister' can be placed directly before personal names without a comma or article when used as official designations.
Finance Minister Sarah Jenkins announced the tax cut this morning.
EN: In Indian news media and political administration, cabinet ministers frequently issue joint directives when dealing with complex crises like Delhi's smog, which intertwines vehicular emissions (Transport) with broader ecological measures (Environment). The surname 'Singh' is extremely common among Sikhs and Northern Indians, often requiring full names and official portfolios to avoid confusion.
EN: The structure 'be meant to + base verb' is used to express the intended purpose, goal, or design of an action, rule, or measure.
These new traffic rules are meant to keep pedestrians safe.
EN: The reporting verb 'explain' is followed by a 'that'-noun clause acting as the direct object, reporting information or reasoning.
The scientist explained that the temperature would rise sharply.
EN: The verb 'apply' followed by the preposition 'to' means 'to concern or affect someone or something'. In this context, 'applies to workers' indicates that only this specific group of people is affected by the rule.
This special discount only applies to students with valid ID cards.
EN: The conjunction 'that' introduces a noun clause functioning as the direct object of the reporting verb 'said'. It allows the speaker to report the content of what the official stated.
The manager said that the meeting would start at ten o'clock.
EN: The 'Delhi Secretariat' (德里秘書處) is the headquarters of the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, housing the offices of the Chief Minister and cabinet ministers. In news reports about administrative measures in Delhi, distinguishing between secretariat staff and essential workers (like hospital or emergency personnel) is common practice during severe smog crises.
EN: Passive Voice (be + past participle): The sentence uses two passive constructions: 'are not included' and 'is considered'. Passive voice shifts the focus from who performs the action to the person or thing receiving the action.
Public transport drivers are not affected by the new rule.
EN: Adverbial Clause of Reason with 'because': 'Because' introduces a subordinate clause explaining the reason or cause for the action in the main clause.
Schools remain open, because education is crucial for children.
EN: In government emergencies such as severe pollution or pandemics, 'essential services' refers to critical functions—like healthcare, public transit, and emergency response—that cannot shut down or shift to remote work without risking public health and safety.
EN: "According to" is a common prepositional phrase used to attribute information, opinions, or reports to a specific source (e.g., a person, document, or organization). It is typically followed by a noun phrase.
According to the weather forecast, it will rain tomorrow.
EN: The modal verb "must" expresses obligation or necessity, followed by the base form of the verb ("continue"). "Continue" can be followed by an infinitive ("to come") or a gerund ("coming") with little change in meaning.
Students must continue to study hard for their exams.
EN: In times of severe public crises or emergencies (such as extreme smog or natural disasters), governments often impose work-from-home orders on non-essential civil servants. However, healthcare workers are uniformly classified as "essential workers" and are expected to report in person regardless of environmental conditions.
Key vocabulary words with IPA pronunciation, definitions, example sentences, and interactive quizzes.
Phrases with type tags, bilingual definitions, usage notes, and example sentences.
to do one's job from one's residence rather than going to an office
a standardized indicator used by government agencies to measure and report daily air quality levels
a service that is vital to the health, safety, or well-being of the public
in the normal or customary way