Bad air hits health, GDP, yet missing from poll promises

Delhi is enjoying a long spell of good air. But for large chunks of the year, the air pollution gets so bad that construction has to be stopped, schools have to be closed, and the city experiences pandemic levels of pollution sickness causing people to seek medical assistance and miss work.

- Neelanjan Sircar and Ishana Deshpande

A study published in The Lancet Planetary Health highlights that states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Rajasthan, with lower per-capita GDPs, face the largest economic losses due to poor air quality. Further, according to the Reserve Bank of India, by 2030, as much as 4.5% of India's GDP could be at risk due to lost labour hours resulting from climate crisis-related issues, including extreme heat and air pollution. Another study in the Lancet showed that nearly 12% of all deaths in Delhi can be attributed to short-term PM2.5 exposure (the fine particulate matter most associated with air pollution).

Yet air pollution didn't register as a big political issue in the recently concluded Delhi elections. According to the Data Action Lab for Emerging Societies (DALES) post-poll survey in Delhi, only 24% of respondents believe that "parties are serious about solving air pollution". Why isn't it more of a political issue?

A genuine crisis

One hypothesis is that the immediacy of air pollution's health and economic effects don't compare to other pressing issues such as subsidies and identity politics, particularly for the poor. Is it true?