DELHI’S POLLUTION CRISIS: A DREARY WINTER

RELEVANCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 3: ENVIRONMENT: ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND DEGRADATION; ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT

THE CONTEXT: Air pollution is a big menace for the city of Delhi which faces this issue annually. The problems with poor air quality usually attract attention during late autumn when stubble burning is at its peak in the states neighbouring the NCR. However, data shows that good or even moderately satisfactory air evades the capital’s residents for most parts of the year, especially in winter.

 REASONS:

• Crop Burning:Farmers of the states around Delhi carry out stubble burning which leads to generation of pollution and these pollutants are carried towards Delhi.
• Vehicular Emissions: Vehicle emissions contribute to the dangerous impacts of smog and air pollution. Due to the sheer volume of automobiles on the road, this is a significant source of pollution.
• Construction Dust: Increase in construction and other infrastructure work in the region has led to generation of construction dust, which acts as a pollutant.
• Industrial Pollution: Delhi-NCR’s industries have not embraced environmentally friendly fuels and methods. They emit harmful gases which cause pollution.
• Stagnant Winds: During winter months, the upward movement of air from the layers below is stopped which causes polluted air to be stagnant over the region. Due to stagnant winds, the pollutants generated in the area get trapped over the region which increases the chances of pollution to a great extent.
• Geographical Reason: As Delhi is land-locked from all sides, the north-westerly winds coming from Pakistan and Afghanistan bring in large amounts of dust particles to the region. Due to the presence of Himalayas, which block the escape route of the air, the dust and pollutants settle in the region.
• Lack in programme implementation: There is lack of effectiveness in programme implementation to tackle air pollution. For example, CAQM has not developed a synergy between the different bodies whose work is crucial to ensure clean air pollution. In 2019, the government launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) to reduce pollution by 20-30% by 2024 compared to 2017. In 2022, the programme’s goalposts were shifted 40% reduction in pollution by 2026. Most independent studies show that progress under NCAP has been slow.
• Unutilised funds: Recently, Centre told Parliament that cities in Delhi-NCR have utilised less than 40 per cent of the funds allocated to curb air pollution.

RECENT STEPS TAKEN:

• Commission for Air Quality Management is monitoring agency set up in 2021 and it has imposed restrictions under phase III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).
• GRAP is a set of incremental anti-pollution measures that are triggered to prevent further worsening of air quality once it reaches a certain threshold in the Delhi-NCR region.
• The implementation of Stage-III GRAP mandates immediate action on multiple fronts. The Sub-Committee decides to invoke 8 point action plan as per Stage-III of revised GRAP in the entire NCR with immediate effect.
• The anti-pollution steps under the 8-point action plan by the central commission are:

1. Intensify the frequency of mechanised and vacuum-based sweeping of roads.
2. Ensure daily water sprinkling, along with dust suppressants, before peak traffic hours on roads and pollution hotspots.
3. Intensify public transport services and introduce differential rates to encourage off-peak travel.
4. Enforce a strict ban on construction and demolition activities in the entire NCR, except essential projects.
5. Close down operations of stone crushers.
6. Close down all mining and associated activities in NCR.
7. Impose strict restrictions on the operation of BS III petrol and BS IV diesel LMVs.
8. Make a decision on discontinuing physical classes in schools for children up to class 4 and conduct classes in an online mode.

THE WAY FORWARD:

• Address Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) burning: A study found that Delhi burns 190 to 246 tons of MSW every day, which severely pollutes the air. Therefore, any form of garbage burning must be stopped and authorities need to develop infrastructure for effective collection and disposal of MSW.
• Promote the use of electric and BS-VI vehicles: On an average vehicle can contribute up to 25% to PM 2.5 levels and at some locations, it can spike to 35%. Using Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) can significantly reduce emissions from diesel vehicles. The introduction of more electric, hybrid and BS-VI vehicles can also help reduce the pollution. Improvement of public transport is also necessary to address the problem.
• Limit biomass burning: Burning of crop residue in Haryana and Punjab needs to stop on urgent basis. Instead of burning, the residue can be used for energy production, biogas generation and feeding cattle.
• Tackle fly ash: During summers, fly ash is one of the biggest contributors to PM 10 in Delhi. To deal with the pollutants, water spraying, installation of windbreakers and plantations should be done.
• Need of long-term plan: There are several measures that are being taken from spraying water to implementing GRAP to odd even solution. However, these measures provide temporary relief, therefore, the persistent problem of air pollution needs a long-term solution like drafting out an all-year action plan to improve air quality.
• Enhanced powers to the authorities: Though CAQM has taken various steps, but the agency has functioned more like a regulator whose primary responsibility is to implement the Graded Action Response Plan. There is a need for more independent power to authorities to take pre-emptive actions and allow denser monitoring.

THE CONCLUSION: Despite several steps taken for combating air pollution in Delhi, it continues to be a much more serious problem. To significantly improve air quality in Delhi, a host of preventive steps need to be taken to provide a long-term solution to this problem.

UPSC PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

1. Describe the key points of the revised Global Air Quality Guidelines (AQGs) recently released by the World Health Organisation (WHO). How are these different from its last update in 2005? What changes in India’s National Clean Air Programme are required to achieve revised standards? (2021)
2. What are the key features of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) initiated by the Government of India? (2020)

 MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Delhi registered severe air pollution on the Air Quality Index (AQI) recently. In this context, analyse the major factors contributing to Delhi’s pollution and suggest measures that need to be taken to address the persistent problem of air pollution in Delhi.

SOURCE: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/editorials/delhi-air-quality-aqi-aqi-register-caqm-pollution-monitoring-agency-9110840/#:~:text=The%20persistent%20problem%20frames%20the,So%20far%2C%20mechanisms%20are%20failing&text=Delhi’s%20problems%20with%20poor%20air,the%20states%20neighbouring%20the%20NCR.