New Delhi (AsiaNews) – “If there’s no work, there’s no food,” said 28-year-old Ranjan, a construction worker living in Delhi with his family, regarding the situation in the city following the suspension of construction activities, a measure intended to reduce fine particulate matter and smog.
Thousands of daily-wage labourers are grappling with the new restrictions imposed in the Indian capital to contain air pollution. Local authorities ordered a halt to various construction and demolition activities from 5 to 20 November, while Level III restrictions came into effect on 6 November, mandating the suspension of all construction work in Delhi.
This decision is a response to an environmental and health emergency that strikes the capital every year with the arrival of winter.
However, the shutdown of construction sites falls hardest on those who rely on daily wages and have no savings, nor any contract that would guarantee pay during periods of inactivity.
According to the Indian Express, among workers in Gurugram and Manesar, the restrictions have left as many as 60–70 per cent of daily-wage construction workers without employment; while many are still awaiting payment for work they had already completed.
Stories gathered by The Wire from Delhi’s working-class neighbourhoods further illustrate the scale of this precarious situation.
Ranjan explained that he lives on about 500 rupees a day, while having to spend 4,500 rupees a month just on rent and electricity. After several days without work, the family was forced to borrow money to cover basic expenses.
Other workers reported that they can no longer afford water, food, or rent. One said that he had not eaten for three days to ensure at least one meal for his wife and children.
Workers are exposed to polluted air on the job, often without adequate protection, yet when operations are halted to safeguard public health, they lose their only source of income.
This situation is further compounded by the difficulty of accessing support measures for construction workers.
In India, workers can register with their respective state Welfare Boards and obtain a card that grants access to various benefits, funded through a levy imposed on the construction sector. However, a significant portion of the workforce, often migrant labourers employed informally, remains unregistered.
In Delhi, the website of the Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board showed approximately 215,000 active cards as of November 2026.
This number appears low when compared to the roughly one million construction workers reported to be registered in the capital as of May 2022, according to The Hindu.
Even those eligible for assistance face obstacles; for instance, some workers have reported that, for months, the Welfare Board’s online portal did not allow new registrations or the renewal of existing cards.
The Supreme Court had to intervene to ensure support, ruling that construction workers should receive a subsistence allowance during work stoppages mandated by Level III anti-pollution measures.
In December 2025, the Delhi government announced a payment of 10,000 rupees for workers affected by these restrictions. According to the authorities, approximately 100,000 workers received the payment, amounting to an expenditure of nearly a billion rupees.
Nevertheless, a labour union reported that about 1,700 workers were still awaiting the payment, while some labourers alleged that they had to pay bribes to secure the subsidy.
These restrictions affect a metropolitan region where the construction sector relies on a vast workforce from other states, especially Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose families in their home villages rely on receiving a portion of these earnings.
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