Despite Delhi receiving most media attention for air pollution, other northern cities like Chandigarh are grappling with extremely toxic air, significantly affecting the health and well-being of millions.
Unseen Crisis: Smog in Northern India Beyond Delhi
Unseen Crisis: Smog in Northern India Beyond Delhi
Cities like Chandigarh and Meerut struggle with severe air pollution, highlighting a broader issue in the Indo-Gangetic plains that often goes unreported.
As winter descends upon northern India, cities like Chandigarh and Meerut are facing alarming levels of air pollution that have become a deadly norm, far from the spotlight usually cast on Delhi. Residents like lawyer Imran Ahmed Ali describe stepping outside only to feel as if they were inhaling smoke, a grim reality evidenced by pollution levels topping more than 15 times the World Health Organization's safety recommendations for over a month.
The dire situation is not isolated to Chandigarh; it is a battle long and hard fought by hundreds of millions in this densely populated region every winter, with a recent report from the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago highlighting that citizens across Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh are negatively impacted. The Indo-Gangetic plains, home to over 540 million people, is marked as India’s most polluted area, where citizens may lose up to 5.4 years of life expectancy due to the relentless smog.
While Delhi’s pollution crisis dominates the headlines, it often overshadows the realities faced in the small towns and cities of northern India. According to Partha Basu, an adviser at the Environmental Defense Fund, while Delhi implements strict pollution control measures like driving restrictions and construction bans, other locales often lack such proactive strategies. "People assume villages are untouched by pollution, which couldn’t be further from the truth," Basu stated.
Contributing factors to this air quality crisis include vehicle emissions, industrial discharges, and the seasonal burning of crop residue. The seasonal cold traps pollutants in the air, exacerbated by the region's geographical constraints, leaving many areas unprepared for the health ramifications of steady pollution. Daily frustrations manifest not just through respiratory struggles but also mental fatigue, as individuals like Aditi Garg in Meerut now confine themselves indoors due to the unbearable smog.
For those in the labor force, particularly vulnerable groups in Uttar Pradesh's informal sectors, the consequences are stark. Daily wage workers and street vendors have no choice but to work outside, exposing them to unhealthy air. Mohammad Salim Siddiqui, an automobile vendor, embodies this struggle, enduring respiratory problems in his community due to relentless pollution levels.
Despite the government's introduction of the National Clean Air Programme in 2019 aimed to cut particulate matter by up to 40% by 2026, experts argue that real change is stunted by inadequate intergovernmental dialogue and coordination. People like Ms. Garg and Mr. Ali articulate their frustration regarding the pervasive acceptance of pollution as a fact of life, with no substantial discourse for meaningful change until pollution peaks once again. They echo the needs for broader awareness and concerted action against toxic air quality that endangers both lives and livelihoods across northern India.
