Yet, for years now, Delhi has failed to provide breathable air to its burgeoning population, leaving it with a lasting impact on the overall life expectancy. According to the latest analysis by the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute of India (EPIC), air pollution is shortening the lives of NCR residents by almost 10 years, apart from leading to serious long-term health consequences — especially for children growing up in the city.
Despite the government vowing to reduce pollution every year, why does the national capital annually end up with dark winter days?
No End To Crop Fires
Despite the Supreme Court ban, stubble burning continues unabated in the National Capital Region (NCR) and its neighbouring states of Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh. A transition to more economical and eco-friendly ways of disposing of the paddy straw is long-awaited. In fact, this year, the area under paddy cultivation in Punjab has also increased to about 31.13 lakh hectares, which could generate as much as 19.76 million tons of paddy straw — a million tons higher than last year.
The late withdrawal of the southwest monsoon further aggravates the situation by delaying the harvesting of paddy, and other crops. If rains continue well into October, most stubble burning fires concentrate towards October-end and November when winter sets in, forming a thick blanket of smoke.
If an early Diwali raised hope of better air quality during a relatively warm October, a delayed monsoon withdrawal has dashed it. The heavy spell of rain, first around September 25 and then the next predicted over Uttar Pradesh, is set to delay harvesting over the northern plains. There are apprehensions that instances of stubble burning might spike post-October 15, which also coincides with the festival season.
High Vehicular Emissions
Studies show that vehicles contribute as much as 40 per cent to the overall air pollution in Delhi, and it has only gotten worse over the years. The 2020-21 edition of the Delhi Economic Survey showed the total number of motorised vehicles registered in the capital city has increased from 11.8 million to over 12.2 million as on March 31, 2021 — a rise of nearly 3 per cent — and that too during the pandemic.
For years, experts have called for the urgent need to decongest roads by strengthening the ailing public transport system which fails to share the load of its expanding population. Most buses that make up for Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC)’s existing fleet of 7,000 are nearing the end of their operational life in another two years. This year, the fleet was augmented with the addition of 250 electric buses that now ply on Delhi’s roads. The Delhi government has promised to take the existing fleet of e-buses to at least 1,800 by 2023.
Experts also highlight that the action on limiting tailpipe emissions of existing private vehicles has so far been limited. The latest 15 point Action Plan of the Arvind Kejriwal-led government also calls for strict compliance of Pollution Under Control (PUC) Certificates for vehicles. It also lays down a plan for decongesting choked roads but the impact will depend on its implementation, which remains to be seen.
Toxic Smoke From Industries
Industries, especially coal-based power plants, are one of the biggest contributors to the pollution crisis and their failure to check emissions has had grave repercussions. The toxic smoke billowing out of power plants continues to offset any improvement brought through others steps. Yet, the Union environment ministry continues to extend the timeline for installing pollution-control technologies for coal-based plants.
Even as Delhi’s pollution reached catastrophic levels, the power plants got another extension of deadline — third time in the last seven years. The power plants within a 10-km radius of Delhi-NCR and cities with a population of over 10 lakh have now been given time till December 2024 instead of the initial December 2022 to install the required infrastructure.
To add to this, most such plants are far off from meeting the targets of ensuring 5 per cent co-firing through biomass necessitated by recent guidelines of the power ministry.
Not Just A Winter Problem
The smog that we see in Delhi may well be a “winter problem” but the toxicity in the air remains all year round. Swerving into action every winter with ad hoc solutions may ameliorate the situation for a while, but Delhi’s chronic air pollution requires a long-term treatment. Whether it is the rising pollution from vehicles and industries or the sudden spike in agricultural fires in winter, only long-term solutions can ensure the city survives this apocalyptic smog and, may be, one day breathe well.
So, how many good air days will Delhi see this winter?
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