Strengthen institutions to combat air pollution

Northern India has been engulfed by hazardous air. A health emergency has peaked with the Air Quality Index (AQI) crossing the 900s in many parts of the national capital.

- CK Mishra Bharati Chaturvedi

While much noise is correctly made at this time of the year, the problem persists for most of the year. What must we do to create institutions that effectively address this killer of about 1.2 million Indians annually?

Air pollution is not a Delhi problem alone. The Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) is often singled out as the most polluted region in the world. It cradles 17 of the world's 20 most polluted cities, according to the IQ Air World Air Quality Report of 2023. The air quality crisis extends well beyond the IGP, affecting many other parts of India. Appreciating the urgency of the need to curb air pollution, in 2019, the ministry of environment, forests and climate change launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) with the bold target of reducing particulate matter (PM) of size less than 10 micron and 2.5 micron (PM10 and PM2.5, respectively) by 20-30% by 2026, using the 2017 levels as the baseline. To achieve this, the NCAP identified 131 non-attainment cities for focused interventions. Additionally, the Commission for Air Quality Monitoring (CAQM) in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas was established to oversee air quality management.

Five years later, air pollution—considered a health hazard since the 1980s—has entered the national conversation. Policymakers are embracing new ideas, and air quality found, for the first time, a place in political manifestos ahead of the 2024 general elections. Several innovative solutions have emerged, and there is cautious optimism despite the everyday miseries of breathing bad air.