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Opinion
If China can cut its pollution, why can’t India?
India’s pollution crisis demands sustained, year-round action, not just emergency steps that kick in when the air turns toxic
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Kavitha Yarlagadda is an independent writer based in Hyderabad, India, who writes about the environment, science, health, social media, food, culture and travel.
Despite years of policy interventions, air pollution in India is rapidly getting worse. By the middle of this month, cities including the capital New Delhi were seeing air quality readings at hazardous levels. A 2024 IQ Air report found India’s particulate matter (PM2.5) levels to be more than 10 times the World Health Organization’s safe limit.
In the north, pollution mainly comes from traffic, construction dust, industry and seasonal stubble burning. What began as an environmental issue is now a major health emergency, prompting advisories for masks, limited outdoor exposure and air purifiers, especially for vulnerable groups.
In fighting pollution, China provides an awkward but useful analogy. Beijing reduced PM2.5 levels by about 35 per cent between 2013 and 2017 thanks to measures including legally mandated targets, vigorous industrial clean-ups and clean energy use. It made its biggest air-quality improvements by cracking down on coal-based heating, shifting households to cleaner fuel options, shutting down heavily polluting local industries and tightening vehicle emission rules.
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