Air quality worsens in Delhi in 2024 as PM2.5 rises after previous year
Air quality of the national capital city has steeped sharply this year 2024. This year, it became the second year on the trot as the city experienced an upward movement in its annual PM2.5 values. This came as a time when stubble burning cases dipped severely in the region of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.
Levels of PM2.5 going up
According to a report by Centre for Science and Environment, PM2.5 concentration annually in Delhi increased to 104.7 micrograms per cubic meter in 2024. This was 3.4% higher than the level reached in 2023. It is over two times the national ambient air quality standard of 40 micrograms per cubic meter.
Although the levels in 2024 were still at 9.6 percent lower than the peak recorded in 2018 at 115.8 micrograms per cubic meter, the data indicates improvement by 3% with respect to the three-year average from 2021 to 2023. Gains achieved between 2018 and 2022 had reversed in controlling air pollution.
Burning Down of Stubble.
Data for 2024 shows that stubble fires in Delhi, Punjab, and Haryana have declined by 37.5% this year. Punjab has witnessed a decline of 75% in the number of stubble burning incidents while Haryana witnessed a decline of 37% in the number of stubble burning cases though winter pollution in Delhi reached peak levels.
The meteorological conditions cannot be blamed, and rises in PM2.5 indicate rising sources of pollution in the region that outweigh earlier gains, said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at CSE.
Local and regional pollution sources such as vehicular emissions, industrial activities, open waste burning, use of solid fuels, and construction dust have undone much of the gains that have been seen over the last decade, it said.
Smog Episodes and Winter Pollution
There were two major episodes of smog during the winter season of 2024. The first event occurred on 13-20 November, for a period of eight days. The average daily intensity of PM2.5 was at 371 micrograms per cubic meter of air. The second event occurred on December 16-20, for a period of four days, with an average PM2.5 measured to be 324 micrograms per cubic meter.
Severe or worse air quality dominated the city for 17 days in winter. This is a reason why pollution levels in the entire city have been rising. Real-time monitoring stations in Delhi data confirmed that peak pollution levels were up by 26% during the early winter period, from 1 October until December 31, as compared to last year.
According to Sharanjeet Kaur, programme officer with CSE’s Urban Lab, it is alarming since it reflects that even after all the efforts made to abate the stubble burning, pollution levels continue at such a high level.
Long-term concerns
While recent progress in improving air quality in Delhi is under a particularly high threat of augmenting local and regional sources of pollution, this report said, it added. The enormous winter pollution cause once was stubble burns; these are abating. That is mostly balanced by a further rise of drivers of emissions-vicissitudinous pollutants produced by automobiles; industrial and occupational pollutants, especially particulate pollutants; and fine dust as an emission byproduct of construction material.
The CSE report strongly underlines the necessity of sustained and multi-pronged efforts to deal with the pollution crisis in the city. It recommends stronger enforcement of air quality regulation, investment in cleaner technologies, and greater public awareness to effectively deal with air pollution.
Wake-Up Call to Action
These are grim reminders of worse times to be seen if corrective attention is not focused on needed improvement in air quality in the case of cities like Delhi. If decisive coordinated action is not forthcoming, a city will quickly squander its recent gains for past years, placing public health and the environment once again into an even precarious situation.
Source : Data and insights from the Centre for Science and Environment’s report on the air pollution trend of Delhi in 2024.