A better way to tackle NCR's air pollution

For over two decades now, the National Capital Region's (NCR's) air pollution and alarming Air Quality Index (AQI) numbers have consistently garnered attention by October each year.

- PROSENJIT DATTA

The media carries front-page reports and television discussions. Hospitals report a sharp spike in pulmonary diseases. And reports on the most polluted global cities sees Delhi take the top spot.

Politicians get into the act, squabble over the possible causes of air pollution and play the blame game. Delhi and its neighbours - Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab - point fingers at one another. Stubble burning by farmers, vehicular emissions, and construction work are all blamed.

A great many measures are announced by state governments from banning firecrackers in Diwali to allowing cars with odd- or even-number plates on specific days of the week. Construction work is often halted for days, weeks, or even months.

None of these measures are permanent solutions, nor are they implemented particularly well. NCR residents, cavalierly ignoring the worsening air quality and its effect on the health of their families, flout the cracker ban. Vehicular traffic and its attendant emissions do not go down much either. Air purifier sales shoot up, while citizens who cannot afford these expensive consumer durables resign themselves to suffering through another winter of bad air. This continues until the air quality improves with the arrival of summer - and then the monsoons.