India is now the eighth most-polluted nation in the world, according to the fifth World Air Quality Report prepared by Swiss firm IQAir based on the PM2.5 emission levels. It’s an improved showing, as it was the fifth most-polluted in the last edition of the rankings. But the good news ends here: As many as 65 Indian cities are now among the 100 most polluted globally, compared to 61 in the last rankings. India’s population is rapidly urbanising—between 2020 and 2035, the urban population is set to grow by 40%, from 483 million to 675 million. So, the latest pollution comparison must trigger urgent action from the government at all levels. City-dwellers in the country seem somewhat sensitised to the problem and there is greater awareness regarding the action needed, especially in cities like Delhi, where the air quality index (AQI) dips to horrific levels in the winters, and Mumbai, which is seeing the worst pollution in decades this spring. (The current PM2.5 levels in Mumbai are more than 4X the cap set by the World Health Organization’s air quality guidelines.)
That said, the national capital’s daily average AQI, though lower at 209 in 2022, hasn’t fallen meaningfully from 2018’s 225. PM2.5 pollution—considered more deadly because of the pollutant’s ability to enter the bloodstream—in Delhi is lower than the pre-pandemic years, but remains an unacceptable 20 times the WHO limit of 5 micrograms/cubic metre. The factors behind urban India’s unbreathable air are well known. The transportation sector, largely reliant on fossil fuels, accounts for 20-35% of the PM2.5 pollution across Indian cities, while biomass burning (solid fuels for cooking etc) and coal-derived electricity are other major contributors. Crop residue burning is a major contributor, too, though only in an episodic and geographically confined manner.
The government has rolled out many measures that could help control air pollution—from subsidised LPG to poor households under the Ujwala scheme (to substitute burning of solid fuels) to schemes to ease access to farm machinery that reduces the need for crop-stubble burning. The National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) aims to reduce particulate matter concentration by 40% by 2026—20-30% by 2024 in all non-attainment cities. But there are many slips as well—last year, India relaxed green compliance rules for coal mines to allow increased production in response to power demand surging with extreme heatwaves. The country even pushed back deadlines to control emission of sulphur oxides by thermal plants. It’s true that India’s emergent energy needs can’t be trumped by green goals. That, of course, doesn’t mean that India can afford to take the foot off the pedal on its green energy ambition—500 GW of renewable power by 2030 needs capacity addition on a war footing. The IQAir data makes it clear that breathable air is largely becoming a problem of haves and have-nots. Cities in the developed world have improved their air quality much faster than those in developing and least-developed countries. Rich nations have pushed their industry to comply with norms that are in line with the WHO air quality guidelines, and have pushed electrification of personal and mass transport. This divide will worsen as energy needs in the developing world grow, even as green technology and funding from the West fall far short of what is needed. Apart from aligning domestic policies with clean air goals, India needs to continue to champion green justice.
