delhi air pollution

Musician, activist, IITian and Cornell University-trained environmental toxicologist Rahul Ram says Delhi’s toxic air has forced him into a painful choice: send his young daughters to the hills for their health

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari questioned the effectiveness of Delhi's Environment Compensation Cess (ECC) in tackling air pollution, highlighting that its collection on national highways hinders seamless travel and damages the reputation of road infrastructure projects. He suggested alternative funding mechanisms for municipal bodies, urging the Delhi government to address the issue to alleviate commuter woes.

Delhi's Chief Minister has unveiled the Air Pollution Mitigation Action Plan 2026, introducing stricter vehicle regulations, including a ban on non-compliant goods vehicles from November 1, 2026. The plan also emphasizes expanding public transport, with a target of 13,760 buses by 2028-29, and implementing tech-driven enforcement to combat air pollution and traffic congestion.

For the eighth consecutive year, New Delhi has been named the most polluted capital in the world, with hazardous PM2.5 levels exceeding the WHO's safe threshold by an alarming 16.4 times. Although there has been a slight uplift since 2024, factors such as seasonal smog, dust storms, and agricultural burning continue to shroud the Indo-Gangetic plain in poor air quality.

The Supreme Court expressed concern over the dangerous levels of pollution in Delhi during the winter season. The court directed the governments of Delhi and its adjoining states to submit details of the steps taken by them to address the issue. The court emphasized the need to tackle stubble burning, which has been identified as a major contributor to air pollution. The Commission for Air Quality Management has taken steps to control pollution, but the court noted that newspaper reports suggest an increase in cases of stubble burning. The case will be further heard on November 7.

Protesting against pollution in the city and demanding that the governments take action to improve the situation, students of Delhi University, Jawaharlal Henru University, Jamia Millia Islamia and Ambedkar University formed a human chain. With their hands held tight, the students assembled at Connaught Place and called for a policy change to make the air better.

Delhi's air pollution has led to a 15% rise in respiratory illnesses. The AQI dropped to the 'very poor' category, prompting special OPD services for pollution-related ailments. Doctors emphasize using N95 masks and staying indoors. Key pollution hotspots include Narela and Rohini, with government plans to curb pollution through various initiatives.

Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) on Friday identified Narela, Anand Vihar, Mundka, Dwarka and Punjabi Bagh as areas of high concern in relation to air pollution. Maximum pollution-related violations were occurring at these locations, it stated.

As the pollution levels in the city reach hazardous levels, chemist shops are witnessing an unparalleled demand for N95 pollution masks in the city. At the many chemist shops outside the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the surge in the sale of anti-pollution masks is such that most shops have already exhausted their stocks and have placed orders for more.

An analysis of the pollution levels in Delhi over the past 15 days by The Energy and Resources Institute (Teri) has revealed that the sharp deterioration in air quality was largely due to agricultural activities, apart from adverse meteorological conditions.

AAP has accused the Centre for failing to provide relief to Delhiites from air pollution. “Our PM is in Thailand, Union health minister in Chennai and the Union environment minister is busy on Twitter.

The national capital's air quality was recorded in the "poor" category for the fifth consecutive day on Sunday, while a government agency said it is likely to improve slightly in the coming days due to a change in the wind direction.

Delhi saw its worst air yet this season on Friday. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) rated the pollution at an AQI of 484, similar to the all-time high of 497 recorded on November 6, 2016. The fate of the other NCR cities was similar, with AQI touching 500 in Noida, 496 in Ghaziabad and Greater Noida, 479 in Faridabad and 469 in Gurugram.

North Delhi Municipal Corporation will be testing dust suppressants in Narela Zone over the weekend in a bid to curb dust pollution from construction sites.

Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) on Friday said that it is unlikely to impose a ban on the entry of trucks in Delhi even though the air quality has reached the “emergency” category under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). This step was taken last year when bad air reached peak levels.

The contribution of stubble burning to Delhi’s air touched a season high of 44% on Friday – a day when the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) touched 500 in parts of Delhi, the maximum limit on CPCB’s index. Data available with the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) showed while the overall concentration of stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana was 35%, increased farm fires over the last 24 hours and favourable north-westerly winds towards the capital have pushed this contribution to 44%. Delhi’s overall AQI, meanwhile, touched a season high of 484 (severe), the highest ever since January 3 when it touched a reading of 444 (severe).

Panic gripped the city’s residents on Friday with the air quality in the ‘severe’ category. People complained about persistent cough, chest congestion, breathing problems and irritation in the eyes — symptoms that have become synonymous with Delhi’s weather over the last few days.

The national capital's air quality remained "very poor" on Friday but no drastic decline is expected in the next three days as strong winds are likely to blow in the region.

Prominent civic groups on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come forward to urgently resolve the pollution situation.

Hundreds of people were left stranded on Sunday after smog wreaked havoc on flight schedules. As many as 19 flights were cancelled at the last moment; nearly 300 were delayed and 37 others were diverted on a day when Delhi gasped for breath.

Over 40% residents of Delhi-NCR want to move to another city because of bad air quality while 16% want to travel during the period, according to a new survey.

Shivam Das’ four-year-old son doesn’t have any history of respiratory illness. But for the past week, he has had to use a nebuliser — a machine that helps you breathe in a medicine as a mist through a mask or mouthpiece to clear the airways — at least thrice a day. His neighbour’s daughter, all of 13, went to the park on Saturday to play with other children. She came back complaining of nausea and her parents said the girl hadn’t stopped vomiting since.

Episodic sources such as stubble burning and firecrackers might have added to Delhi’s air pollution woes but the capital cannot afford to overlook the constant sources of pollution — primarily transport, industry and dust — whose contributions put the entire National Capital Region in high risk for most of the year.

The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) is planning to monitor water supply network in the city through Scada project and hopes to reduce the non-revenue water (NRW) losses from current 44% to 20-25%.

The emission from harvest remnant burning in the PM2.5 pollutants in Delhi’s air has been negligible for the past four days due to meteorological factors. However, the farm fires are likely to increase and stubble burning is expected to impact Delhi’s air quality rapidly from October 27. The ‘satisfactory’ air after Sunday’s rain is, in that regard, a short-lived respite for Delhiites.

Taking cognizance of high pollution levels in Delhi, National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Monday said the current situation was not the creation of one day but a result of continuous negligence and apathy of statutory authorities in law enforcement.

Civic authorities have stepped up action to check pollution, especially at 13 spots considered the foulest in the city. The Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority recently informed the Supreme Court that the top contributors to pollution, especially at the hotspots, were construction and demolition activities, open dumping or burning of garbage, traffic congestion and unpaved roads and open dust pits.