Problems
Causes of toxic smog across much of New Delhi.
For the fourth year in a row, Delhi has topped a list of the world’s most polluted capital cities. Smog in Delhi is a persistent severe air pollution event in New Delhi and surrounding areas in the National Capital Territory of India. Poor visibility leads to crashes throughout the city, including vehicle congestion on the Yamuna Expressway. The "great smog" also leads to the cancellation and delay of public transport, primarily trains and flights, creating many obstacles for people. Causes of poor air quality: Industrial pollution and vehicular emissions are toxic air the whole year round. A peak in air pollution is down to crop burning. Wood burning fires, cow dung burning, agricultural land fires, diesel generator exhaust, construction site dust, garbage burning. Stubble burning in agriculture has also affected Delhi's air quality when the crop is harvested. India gets about 70% of its electricity from coal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi says India's emissions will be net-zero by 2070 — 20 years after the U.S. and Europe and 10 years after China.
Air pollution in New Delhi, India and health problems
Prolonged exposure to high air pollution, similar to what Delhi is experiencing now, is not only harmful to respiratory health but can also trigger cardiac, neurological and gastric problems, impacting productivity of people, experts said. The dust pollution from construction sites due to rampant ban violations also puts the health of people at risk, they said. Exposure to high pollution levels worsens existing respiratory illnesses and contributes to new cases.
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Timelines
2022
New Delhi has the highest exposure to toxic air in the country. People in India had the fifth highest annual recordings of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), a particularly harmful form of air pollution. The year-round average for PM2.5 pollution in New Delhi was the worst of any capital city in the world by a large margin.
2021
New Delhi's air pollution is so bad, officials are calling for a citywide lockdown. At a hearing Monday, justices ordered authorities to halt all nonessential travel on roads in the national capital region. They also told them to close offices in the area, shifting tens of millions of people to work from home. New Delhi's schools are already closed this week because of air pollution that's been about four times the safe limit. Construction sites are also on pause, which will ultimately slow the economy. For the fourth year in a row, Delhi has topped a list of the world’s most polluted capital cities. Air pollution levels were over 10 times the safe levels prescribed by the World Health Organization (WHO).
2019
In 2019, Nasa's Earth observing satellites detected fires from space. Exactly how much of the annual peak in air pollution is down to crop burning is uncertain – official figures put it at around 10%, while other research suggests it could be higher. In Delhi, crop burning is thought to contribute as much as 42% of all particulate matter in the air. People from all age groups experience increased respiratory illnesses during this time of year.
1996
In 1996 the closure and relocation of over 1,300 highly-polluting industries from Delhi’s residential areas beyond the National Capital Region (NCR) in a phased manner. Multiple brick kilns were also directed to be relocated outside city limits.
In March 1995, the Supreme Court, while hearing a plea by environmentalist and lawyer M.C. Mehta about Delhi’s polluting industries, noted that Delhi was the world’s fourth most polluted city in terms of concentration of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the ambient atmosphere.