Delhi winter air reaches AQI 500, experts urge action

Delhi's winter air quality has deteriorated, with government stations regularly logging Air Quality Index figures above 300 and on the worst days reaching 500, while Swiss‑based IQAir has recorded levels close to 1,000, according to monitoring data.

Analyst Manoj Kumar of the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said, "If we want to reduce pollution, we need to set targets for every sector - including power generation, industry and transport - not just vehicle entry, construction and stubble burning," and added, "We know how much each sector and each state contributes to pollution. We can set targets to reduce emissions from each of them over the next five years."

Bosu highlighted that secondary pollutants, formed when gases react with sunlight and moisture, receive insufficient attention and noted that dust, coal, fly ash, brick‑kiln emissions and large‑scale urban waste burning also add to the problem, stating, "Pollution is not just caused by biomass burning or vehicles," and "Dust being stirred up from the ground, coal and fly ash, materials burned at brick kilns and the large‑scale burning of urban waste are also contributing to the problem. And much of this is still not being stopped."

He explained that pollutants drift into the capital from neighbouring states, limiting the impact of Delhi‑only measures and urging cooperation across the northern region.

Health experts warn that such pollution endangers residents daily; the World Health Organization advises 24‑hour average PM2.5 levels should stay below 15 µg/m³, yet Delhi often records concentrations more than 25 times that limit in winter. Dr Manoj Goel, head of the pulmonology unit at Fortis Memorial Research Institute, said the tiny particles "can penetrate deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream, triggering inflammation and affecting multiple organs" and noted short‑term exposure can cause throat irritation, coughing, wheezing and breathlessness, as well as aggravate heart and lung disease.

A 2025 report by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago estimated that air pollution could cut life expectancy in Delhi by up to 8.2 years.