Life with PM2.5: Delhi’s poisonous Air Threatens Millions of Lives
Again, like every winter, the air of Delhi-NCR has become poisonous since the month of November. The condition has remained worrying since the festival of Diwali. Once again, the Supreme Court has refused to give any relaxation in the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)-4. Capital city is in the grip of a hazardous blanket of smog. The AQI in Delhi-NCR is constantly struggling to below 400. When breathing became unbearable, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) had to implement the stringent provisions of GRAP-4. This included provisions like banning the entry of non essential trucks and stopping construction work on public project sites. Every year, after Diwali, as soon as the weather changes and incidents of stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana also act as fuel to this fire, the smog situation in capital becomes worse.
Delhiites are dependent on poisonous air for breathing
'Dilli', the capital city, is called the heart of the country. But the condition of air pollution in the capital is such that the hearts of Delhities are in danger. In fact, it has become clear in many research studies that particulate matter is at the center of Delhi's pollution. To break it in simple terms, particulate matter is a type of particle pollution, which is usually formed by a mix of tiny dust particles and liquid droplets. It's possible to see these dust particles found in the form of dust, smoke and dirt, but some particles are so thin that it is not possible to see them. These dust particles are 2.5 micrometers or even smaller.
According to a report by Climate Trends - the safe limit of PM 2.5 is 60 micrograms per cubic meter and the annual limit is 40 micrograms per cubic meter. On the other hand, if we talk about the data set by the World Health Organisation, these standards are even more stringent. According to WHO, this limit is 15 micrograms per cubic meter and the annual limit is 05 micrograms per cubic meter, respectively.
The worrying fact is that the PM 2.5 level in New Delhi has crossed this fixed cap many times. It has become crystal clear in all the findings that due to soaring air pollution in Delhi-NCR, there has been a nonstop increase in respiratory diseases. A news report by the newspaper Indian Express says that in the previous eighteen years, the death rate due to respiratory diseases in the New Delhi has been increasing continuously.
Where the figure of institutional deaths was 4.91% in 2005, increased to 9.29% in 2023. In the research report of Indian Express, Medical Certification of Cause of Death has been quoted for this figure.
The significant diseases spreading among people due to New Delhi's air pollution are- influenza, bronchitis, pneumonia, and asthma. As per the report, institutional deaths are those that happen in the presence of medical personnel in a medical institution.
According to the Indian Express report, the latest figures of 2023 say that till last year, 5236 of those who died were men while 3563 were women. While the situation about two deaths could not be clear. Out of these, 3606 deaths were due to pneumonia while 13 deaths were reported due to acute bronchitis and bronchiolitis, apart from this, the cause of 254 deaths was asthma.
The pollution monitor data of the US Embassy located in Chanakyapuri, a posh area of New Delhi, reveals an even more worrying situation. These data mention the gravity of this grave situation. As mentioned by US Embassy, the Air Quality Index was found to be more than 1000, whereas according to the CPCB, it is limited to 500. The reason for this major difference is the different methods of measuring the AQI. However, experts have often said that the AQI is important, but rather than getting into a debate on it, attention should be paid to the condition of PM 2.5 and PM 10.
Life is at stake
Chest surgeon and founder of Lung Care Foundation, Arvind Kumar, says polluted air is an invisible force which is proving to be fatal for the people of Delhi. Due to constant exposure to PM 2.5, people are getting various diseases as well as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease which has proved to be a serious threat to life. Due to this, problems like lung cancer, stroke and heart disease are emerging among people. Young children and older people are more vulnerable to it. Apart from this, marginalised communities, who have limited means of health protection or lack of information, also fall prey to it comparatively quickly.
According to the State of Global Year 2024 report, 8.1 million deaths occurred globally in 2021 due to air pollution. Out of which 2.1 million people were from India. According to World Bank data, the global economy is losing 8.1 trillion US dollars every year due to air pollution. The problem is that this is less than 6.1% of global GDP. A strong political will is needed to find a meaningful solution in this direction.
Delhi has a shameful record
As reported by various international environment organisations working towards environment and climate change, Delhi is the sixth most polluted capital city in the world.
Dr Jemilah Mahmood, Executive Director of Sunway Centre for Planetary Health, Sunway University, Kuala lumpur, Malaysia, says that Delhi's dangerous toxic air is a clear indication that air pollution is no longer just an environmental issue but a public health emergency. Lakhs of people in Indian subcontinent and South East Asia are breathing poisonous air. Ending dependence on non- renewable energy sources is no longer the only option. But for our existence and the safety of our future generations, we will have to adopt it.
Current status of mitigation measures
To tackle air pollution, CAQM has strictly implemented GRAP Stage-IV. CAQM has implemented an eight-point agenda to combat air pollution and save public health. These will be implemented in the entire Delhi NCR and will remain in force until the air pollution situation improves. But these are seasonal measures. Nothing is done throughout the year to address the poor condition of Delhi pollution, which becomes even more severe and dreadful with the change in weather.
It is extremely important to implement long-term protection programmes to bring about permanent improvement in the pollution situation of Delhi. This includes promoting clean energy sources, implementing strict policies for industrial carbon emissions and promoting sustainable agricultural practices so that things like stubble burning can be stopped. These are the policies that our governments will have to implement at their level. But apart from this, there are also some tasks related to changes in the lifestyle of Delhi residents, for which a large-scale agenda in the form of a combination of awareness campaigns and some government policies needs to be implemented.
As reported by news paper Economic Times, the total certified vehicles in New Delhi were 79.18 lakh by the year 2021-22, which has decreased by 35% after the decision of the Arvind Kejriwal government. The Kejriwal government had banned diesel vehicles older than ten years and petrol vehicles older than fifteen years. There is a need to do more similar environment friendly and eco- friendly practices, such as building more and more cycle tracks, encouraging walking, etc.
Tokyo: A case study of the world's cleanest capital city
According to a report by Conde Nast Magazine, among all the capitals of the world, Japan's capital Tokyo is the cleanest city with an AQI of 17. It is important to know what steps Tokyo has taken in this direction in a systematic manner in the past decades. In 1972 itself, Tokyo had targeted pollutants like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide for pollution control. To deal with these, the latest technology was adopted. In this, strict policies were made and implemented for de-sulfurization of the system and use of low sulfur fuel. Furthermore, in recent times, Japan's capital city has adopted the Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) policy. The end goal is to sell 50% zero emission cars of the total car sales in Tokyo by the 2030. Also, the target has been set to make all the public buildings of Tokyo 0% carbon emitting by the 2050. A series of cycle tracks have also been made in Tokyo.
Therefore, small steps need to be taken towards making Delhi a clean air city. Along with this, these policies need to be implemented religiously on the ground. The increasing sale of air purifiers in Delhi NCR shows that even though air is free, it is no longer free. As the 37th President of America, Richard Nixon, said in a speech given in the State of Union:
"We still think of air as free. But clean air is not free, and neither is clean water. Through our years of past carelessness, we incurred a debt to nature, and now that debt is being called."
Again, like every winter, the air of Delhi-NCR has become poisonous since the month of November. The condition has remained worrying since the festival of Diwali. Once again, the Supreme Court has refused to give any relaxation in the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)-4. Capital city is in the grip of a hazardous blanket of smog. The AQI in Delhi-NCR is constantly struggling to below 400. When breathing became unbearable, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) had to implement the stringent provisions of GRAP-4. This included provisions like banning the entry of non essential trucks and stopping construction work on public project sites. Every year, after Diwali, as soon as the weather changes and incidents of stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana also act as fuel to this fire, the smog situation in capital becomes worse.
Delhiites are dependent on poisonous air for breathing
'Dilli', the capital city, is called the heart of the country. But the condition of air pollution in the capital is such that the hearts of Delhities are in danger. In fact, it has become clear in many research studies that particulate matter is at the center of Delhi's pollution. To break it in simple terms, particulate matter is a type of particle pollution, which is usually formed by a mix of tiny dust particles and liquid droplets. It's possible to see these dust particles found in the form of dust, smoke and dirt, but some particles are so thin that it is not possible to see them. These dust particles are 2.5 micrometers or even smaller.
According to a report by Climate Trends - the safe limit of PM 2.5 is 60 micrograms per cubic meter and the annual limit is 40 micrograms per cubic meter. On the other hand, if we talk about the data set by the World Health Organisation, these standards are even more stringent. According to WHO, this limit is 15 micrograms per cubic meter and the annual limit is 05 micrograms per cubic meter, respectively.
The worrying fact is that the PM 2.5 level in New Delhi has crossed this fixed cap many times. It has become crystal clear in all the findings that due to soaring air pollution in Delhi-NCR, there has been a nonstop increase in respiratory diseases. A news report by the newspaper Indian Express says that in the previous eighteen years, the death rate due to respiratory diseases in the New Delhi has been increasing continuously.
Where the figure of institutional deaths was 4.91% in 2005, increased to 9.29% in 2023. In the research report of Indian Express, Medical Certification of Cause of Death has been quoted for this figure.
The significant diseases spreading among people due to New Delhi's air pollution are- influenza, bronchitis, pneumonia, and asthma. As per the report, institutional deaths are those that happen in the presence of medical personnel in a medical institution.
According to the Indian Express report, the latest figures of 2023 say that till last year, 5236 of those who died were men while 3563 were women. While the situation about two deaths could not be clear. Out of these, 3606 deaths were due to pneumonia while 13 deaths were reported due to acute bronchitis and bronchiolitis, apart from this, the cause of 254 deaths was asthma.
The pollution monitor data of the US Embassy located in Chanakyapuri, a posh area of New Delhi, reveals an even more worrying situation. These data mention the gravity of this grave situation. As mentioned by US Embassy, the Air Quality Index was found to be more than 1000, whereas according to the CPCB, it is limited to 500. The reason for this major difference is the different methods of measuring the AQI. However, experts have often said that the AQI is important, but rather than getting into a debate on it, attention should be paid to the condition of PM 2.5 and PM 10.
Life is at stake
Chest surgeon and founder of Lung Care Foundation, Arvind Kumar, says polluted air is an invisible force which is proving to be fatal for the people of Delhi. Due to constant exposure to PM 2.5, people are getting various diseases as well as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease which has proved to be a serious threat to life. Due to this, problems like lung cancer, stroke and heart disease are emerging among people. Young children and older people are more vulnerable to it. Apart from this, marginalised communities, who have limited means of health protection or lack of information, also fall prey to it comparatively quickly.
According to the State of Global Year 2024 report, 8.1 million deaths occurred globally in 2021 due to air pollution. Out of which 2.1 million people were from India. According to World Bank data, the global economy is losing 8.1 trillion US dollars every year due to air pollution. The problem is that this is less than 6.1% of global GDP. A strong political will is needed to find a meaningful solution in this direction.
Delhi has a shameful record
As reported by various international environment organisations working towards environment and climate change, Delhi is the sixth most polluted capital city in the world.
Dr Jemilah Mahmood, Executive Director of Sunway Centre for Planetary Health, Sunway University, Kuala lumpur, Malaysia, says that Delhi's dangerous toxic air is a clear indication that air pollution is no longer just an environmental issue but a public health emergency. Lakhs of people in Indian subcontinent and South East Asia are breathing poisonous air. Ending dependence on non- renewable energy sources is no longer the only option. But for our existence and the safety of our future generations, we will have to adopt it.
Current status of mitigation measures
To tackle air pollution, CAQM has strictly implemented GRAP Stage-IV. CAQM has implemented an eight-point agenda to combat air pollution and save public health. These will be implemented in the entire Delhi NCR and will remain in force until the air pollution situation improves. But these are seasonal measures. Nothing is done throughout the year to address the poor condition of Delhi pollution, which becomes even more severe and dreadful with the change in weather.
It is extremely important to implement long-term protection programmes to bring about permanent improvement in the pollution situation of Delhi. This includes promoting clean energy sources, implementing strict policies for industrial carbon emissions and promoting sustainable agricultural practices so that things like stubble burning can be stopped. These are the policies that our governments will have to implement at their level. But apart from this, there are also some tasks related to changes in the lifestyle of Delhi residents, for which a large-scale agenda in the form of a combination of awareness campaigns and some government policies needs to be implemented.
As reported by news paper Economic Times, the total certified vehicles in New Delhi were 79.18 lakh by the year 2021-22, which has decreased by 35% after the decision of the Arvind Kejriwal government. The Kejriwal government had banned diesel vehicles older than ten years and petrol vehicles older than fifteen years. There is a need to do more similar environment friendly and eco- friendly practices, such as building more and more cycle tracks, encouraging walking, etc.
Tokyo: A case study of the world's cleanest capital city
According to a report by Conde Nast Magazine, among all the capitals of the world, Japan's capital Tokyo is the cleanest city with an AQI of 17. It is important to know what steps Tokyo has taken in this direction in a systematic manner in the past decades. In 1972 itself, Tokyo had targeted pollutants like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide for pollution control. To deal with these, the latest technology was adopted. In this, strict policies were made and implemented for de-sulfurization of the system and use of low sulfur fuel. Furthermore, in recent times, Japan's capital city has adopted the Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) policy. The end goal is to sell 50% zero emission cars of the total car sales in Tokyo by the 2030. Also, the target has been set to make all the public buildings of Tokyo 0% carbon emitting by the 2050. A series of cycle tracks have also been made in Tokyo.
Therefore, small steps need to be taken towards making Delhi a clean air city. Along with this, these policies need to be implemented religiously on the ground. The increasing sale of air purifiers in Delhi NCR shows that even though air is free, it is no longer free. As the 37th President of America, Richard Nixon, said in a speech given in the State of Union:
"We still think of air as free. But clean air is not free, and neither is clean water. Through our years of past carelessness, we incurred a debt to nature, and now that debt is being called."