AIR POLLUTION IN DELHI

1. Background

• Twenty-one of the world’s 30 cities with the worst levels of air pollution are in India, World Air Quality Report.
• Indeed, air pollution is pervasive in many parts of India, causing massive public health and environmental crises. 
• The economic cost of fossil fuel air pollution alone is estimated at INR 10,700 billion, or 5.4 per cent of the country’s annual GDP. 
• An estimated one million deaths each year, and 980,000 preterm births, are attributed to air pollution from fossil fuels in India.
• Among all the cities in India, some of the worst levels of air pollution are seen in its capital territory, Delhi. 
• The impacts are devastating, including the degree of particulate matter concentrations in the air (environmental), reduction in life expectancy (health), and high costs that the state is incurring to resolve the crisis (economic). 
• The main sources of air pollution in Delhi include vehicle exhaust, heavy industry such as power generation, small-scale industries like brick kilns, suspended dust on the roads due to vehicle movement and construction activities, open waste burning, combustion of fuels for cooking, lighting, and heating, and in-situ power generation via diesel generator sets.
• Compounding the problem are seasonal emissions from dust storms, forest fires, and open field fires during harvest season. 
• Extreme air pollution from these sources affects millions of people in densely populated regions who are exposed to thick, toxic smog for long periods.

2. Air Pollution Trends

• India has been particularly vulnerable to air pollution over the last two decades, owing to population growth, increasing numbers of vehicles, use of fuels, inefficient transportation systems, poor land-use patterns, industrialisation, and ineffective environmental regulations.
• Among Indian cities, the capital, New Delhi, is one of the worst affected. New Delhi has the highest ambient particulate matter pollution exposure in the country. 
• As of 2019, the average annual PM 2.5 concentration across India was 58.1 micrograms per cubic meter; Delhi’s average PM 2.5 concentration for the year 2019 was 98.6 micrograms per cubic meter. 
• The startling aspect of that statistic is that the recorded level is not just the highest for any capital city in India, but any capital city in the world.

3. Air Quality in Delhi: Key Factors 

• The most crucial reasons for the alarming levels of air pollution in Delhi include the city’s landlocked geographical location, crop burning in neighbouring states (Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan), vehicular emissions, industrial pollution, and large-scale construction activities. 

3.1.Crop Burning

• The national capital territory of Delhi is landlocked between the states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, and the Himalayas in the north. 
• Much of the air pollution in Delhi is blamed on crop-burning—especially in the states of Punjab and Haryana, where rice and wheat are widely grown. 
• Burning typically peaks during the first week of November, a time when many farmers set fire to leftover rice stalks and straw after harvest, a practice is known as stubble or paddy burning, a cost-effective measure for clearing out fields.
• As the new harvest season starts, paddy is burnt on a large scale, resulting in a dense layer of smog over the Northern Plains, including Delhi NCR. 
• Farmers in the states of Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh grow rice on 10.5 million hectares (26 million acres), producing about 48 million tonnes of straw a year of which about 39 million tonnes are burnt.
• The problem has become more acute due to various reasons including the types of seeds used and government policies that encourage late harvesting to save groundwater.
• The burning often coincides with falling temperatures and slow wind speeds—meteorological conditions that can lead to temperature inversions, which trap smoke in the place.
• There is also a mistaken belief among farmers in neighbouring states that burning the stubble will take the nutrients back to the soil.

3.2.Industrial Pollution

• Delhi has the highest cluster of small-scale industries in India. Assessments made by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) show that the national capital is home to and surrounded by highly polluted industrial clusters that do not meet limits on air, water or soil emissions. The Najafgarh drain basin in Delhi, for example—which includes the Anand Parbat, Naraina, Okhla and Wazirpur industrial areas—is the second most polluted cluster in India: its air and water are in the “critical” category in toxic content, and its soil, “severe”.
• With as many as 3,182 industries located across the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), industrial pollution adds about 18.6 per cent to the poor air quality. 
• Emissions in the order of 200-1000 tonnes/year are found over industrial zones next to the most used arteries of roads.
• Compounding the situation is the federal government’s inefficient carbon tax policy. 
• Since carbon tax is levied exclusively on coal, major industries have switched to cheaper fossil fuel-based alternatives to avoid such levy.
• To the relief of the capital territory, the Supreme Court in 2017 banned the use of cheaper alternatives in the NCR, including petroleum coke and furnace oil; the tribunal suggested that similar steps be taken in other States.
• However, these same fuels continue to be used in neighbouring states, and their emissions contribute to Delhi’s Air Quality Index

3.3.Vehicular Emissions

• The transport sector is the main source of PM2.5 emissions in Delhi (28 per cent of all PM2.5 emissions). 
• Vehicular contribution also makes up 80 per cent of nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide in Delhi’s air.
• Data on vehicular pollution in Delhi shows the following: trucks and tractors generate 9 per cent of emissions; 7 per cent from two-wheelers; 5 per cent from three-wheelers; 3 per cent each from cars and buses; and 1 per cent from light commercial vehicles. 
• In all, these vehicles are responsible for 41 per cent of the total pollution load in Delhi.
• The number of vehicles in Delhi was 10.9 million in March 2018, including over 7 million two-wheelers. While the annual growth rate of vehicles dropped from 8.13 per cent in 2005-06 to 5.81 per cent in 2017-18, the number of vehicles per thousand population increased from 317 to 598 during the period.
• The total number of motor vehicles plying the roads of the national capital territory was 10.986 million as of 31 March 2018.
• Emissions from four-wheelers registered in other states also contribute to the overall emissions from cars in Delhi.
• In 2018, cars from outside Delhi contributed to nearly 25-45 per cent of overall emissions from four-wheelers.

3.4.Construction

• Construction sites generate high levels of pollutants that can travel long distances over time; this is true for Delhi NCR.
• The outskirts of NCT have roughly 360 brick kilns, mostly in the Jhajjar, Faridabad and Ghaziabad regions, whose peak business months are from December to June. 
• Their emissions rise during the winter months because, in summer and spring, the winds are relatively faster, and gasses do not stay suspended in one place.
• Fine dust from construction activities is a significant contributor to the poisonous mixture referred to as ‘smog’. 
• According to Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) officials, 30 per cent of air pollution in the territory is caused by dust from construction sites.
• The government and local municipal corporations have not adequately ensured compliance of the construction industry with environmental regulations such as covering up debris and waste management. 
• Compounding the problem is that infrastructure projects do not bother to publish timelines, rendering their construction teams without accountability.

4. Impacts of Poor Air Quality

• The Global Burden of Disease Report ranked outdoor air pollution as the fifth leading cause of death in India in 2017. 
• From a demographic perspective, high Particulate Matter (PM) concentration is responsible for reducing life expectancy by 3.2 years for 660 million Indians living in urban agglomerations.
• In 2017, India had 18 per cent of the global population but a share of 26 per cent of global disability-affected life years (DALY) attributable to air pollution.
• As of 2016, India had 1887.6 DALYs per 100,000 individuals from ambient air pollution, as compared to 1088.62 in China and 419.59 in the US. Of the total 480·7 million (441·7–526·3) DALYs in India in 2017, 38·7 million (34·5–42·4) or 8·1% (7·1–9·0) were attributable to air pollution. In Delhi, total DALYs due to particulate matter concentration increased from 339296.03 to 750320.60 from the average year 1995 to 2015
• The estimated economic cost of PM 10 pollution for Delhi, at a constant, 2005 price, increased from USD 2.714. billion to 6.394 billion from 1995 to 2015.
• Furthermore, Delhi residents could see 9.4 years added to their life expectancy if pollution were reduced to meet guidelines set by the World Health Organization (WHO).
• This potential increase in life years would have been highest in north India which has a high dual burden of ambient particulate matter and household air pollution.

4.1.Health

• Fine particles (PM2.5) pose the greatest health risk, as they are minuscule and can get deep into a person’s lungs and bloodstream.
• Exposure to fine particles can affect lung function and worsen medical conditions such as asthma and heart disease.
• Long-term exposure to fine particulate matter has been linked with an increased rate of chronic bronchitis, reduced lung function, and increased mortality from lung cancer and heart disease.
• The Centre for Chest Surgery & Lung Transplantation at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi has observed a disturbing trend of young, non-smoking individuals getting diagnosed for lung cancer for those who were admitted to the center. 
• Indeed, the share of non-smokers with lung cancer has risen from just 10 per cent in the 1980s to 50 per cent in the last decade.
• PM10 are particularly dangerous because these are particles in the air with a diameter of fewer than 10 micrometres, small enough to pass through the throat and nose and enter the lungs.[48] Inhalation of these particles can result in several health issues, ranging from coughing and wheezing to asthma attacks and bronchitis, as well as hypertension, heart diseases, strokes, and premature death.

4.2 Economy

• The economic cost of air pollution for India is extremely high. India spends around 1.28 per cent of the GDP on health, while air pollution from burning fossil fuels results in the loss of 5.4 per cent of the country’s GDP.
• A report by the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay has found that air pollution cost Delhi some US$10.66 billion in 2015 alone. 
• Delhi reels from these economic costs as the territory is an essential destination for product manufacturing and enterprises and is one of the most lucrative places for foreign direct investment (FDI).
• According to the industry group ASSOCHAM, Delhi’s poor air quality could drive away top corporate heads and push work to other urban communities in India or abroad. 
• This translates to increased difficulty in sourcing top-level talent in the NCR, increased costs for air purification systems and maintenance in office places and decreased work efficiency during periods of acute pollution due to employee sickness and absences.
• For example, exposure to pollution from fossil fuels leads to around 490 million days of work absence due to illness.

4.3.Environment

• Air pollution, particularly sulphur and nitrogen emissions, as well as ground-level ozone—affects the ability of natural ecosystems to function and grow. 
• In turn, the negative consequences on the environment affect human populations. 
• For example, harmful concentrations of pollutants can directly enter drinking water through groundwater seepage. 
• Air pollution also diminishes the ability of the ecosystem to capture carbon—a role that it plays in climate change mitigation.

4.4.Impact of Ozone

• One of the biggest environmental concerns posed by air pollution is the emission of ozone gas.
• According to the air quality index (AQI), released every day by the CPCB, ozone is emerging as a dominant pollutant along with PM, especially in the Delhi and NCR regions.
• The non-government Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) tracked the daily ozone data released by the CPCB for Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) for the period April 1-June 15, 2019—when the capital witnessed a searing heat wave and found that average ozone levels exceeded the prescribed standard of 16 per cent of the days overall.
• While the eight-hour average standard for ozone exposure is 100 micrograms per cubic metre, the highest concentration in Delhi in 2019 was 122 micrograms per cu. M.
• Air pollution also results in acid rain and crop damage. 
• The nitrogen oxide and sulfur oxides released in the environment as a result of burning fossil fuels form acids. 
• These acids fall on Earth’s surface in either wet form (rain, snow, fog) or dry precipitation (gases and particulates). 
• Acid rain damages trees and makes water unsuitable for aquatic life, and harms wildlife, too.
• Ground-level ozone also affects the agricultural and forest yields, which further stuns the growth and sustainability of tree seedlings.

5. Anti-Pollution Policy Measures: An Evaluation

Government Initiatives to Combat Air Pollution

• Notification of National Ambient Air Quality Standards and sector-specific emission and effluent standards for industries;
• Setting up of monitoring network for assessment of ambient air quality;
• Introduction of cleaner gaseous fuels like CNG, LPG etc and ethanol blending;
• Launching of National Air Quality Index (AQI);
• Leapfrogging from BS-IV to BS-VI standards for vehicles by 1st April 2020;
• Banning of the burning of biomass;
• Promotion of public transport network;
• Pollution Under Control Certificate;
• Issuance of directions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981;
• Installation of online continuous (24x7) monitoring devices by 17 highly polluting industrial sectors;
• Regulating the bursting of pollution-emitting crackers;
• Notification of graded response action plan for Delhi identifying source-wise actions for various levels of air pollution, etc.

6. What is green fuel all About

• Green fuel, also known as biofuel, is a type of fuel distilled from plants and animal materials, believed by some to be more environmentally friendly than the widely-used fossil fuels that power most of the world.