Breathing Better: The Real Story Behind Air Quality – What’s Been Done, What’s Next, and How Cities Like Delhi Can Lead

Every major city on Earth carries a signature challenge. For some, it’s flooding. For others, it’s earthquakes, heatwaves, or housing shortages. For rapidly growing Indian cities, one of the defining issues of our time is air quality.

This isn’t a story about failure. It’s a story about a complex problem that science now understands better than ever—and a city that has already tried many ideas, learned from mistakes, and is actively experimenting with new solutions.

Delhi is not alone in this journey. Beijing, London, Los Angeles, Seoul—each of them once struggled with choking smog and public health crises before gradually bending the curve through policy, technology, and citizen participation.

The key question isn’t: “Why is the air bad?”
The real questions are:

• What exactly is causing it?
• What has been done so far?
• What worked, what didn’t—and what can be done better?
• What can we learn from cities that successfully cleaned up their air?

Let’s unpack this, carefully and honestly.

Air Quality Is a System, Not a Single Villain

Air pollution isn’t born from one source. It emerges from the interaction of many forces:

• Geography and winter weather (like temperature inversions)
• Construction and infrastructure growth
• Vehicular emissions and fuel quality
• Industrial activity and waste burning
• Regional agricultural practices (stubble burning)
• Climate change and shifting wind patterns

Cities like Delhi sit in an inland region where, in winter, cold, dense air settles near the surface and warmer air stays above, creating a “lid” that traps pollutants near the ground. This phenomenon, called temperature inversion, is not unique to India; it’s seen in cities from Beijing to Los Angeles.

That means the same level of emissions that might disperse quickly in summer can hang in the air for days in late October and November.

So the challenge isn’t just “emit less” — it’s emit less, at the right time, in the right sectors, with the right enforcement, and pair that with smarter urban planning.

What Delhi Has Actually Done in the Last 10 Years

The last decade has seen Delhi move from treating air pollution as a seasonal headline to treating it as a continuous governance priority. The picture is mixed—some experiments worked, some underperformed—but the effort is very real.

Odd–Even Road Rationing: Useful, but Not a Silver Bullet

The odd–even scheme, first introduced in 2016 and brought back in later winters, restricted private cars on alternate days based on their number plates.

Analyses have found that:

• It reduced traffic volume on key corridors and eased congestion.
• Some studies observed short-term reductions in particulate levels during the scheme.
• But city-wide impact was limited when background pollution from outside sources—especially seasonal smoke and regional haze—remained high.

What went right: It was a bold, quick tool to cut peak traffic emissions and put air pollution at the center of public discourse.

What didn’t: It was temporary and reactive, focusing mostly on private cars while other large sources remained active.

Key lesson: Odd–even is useful as an emergency brake, not a long-term strategy. It should sit alongside deeper structural changes in transport, fuel, and urban design.

“Yudh Pradushan Ke Virudh” and Hotspot-Based Action

In 2020, the Delhi government launched “Yudh Pradushan ke Virudh”—a citywide “war against pollution” campaign.

Key elements included:

• Identification of pollution hotspots such as Anand Vihar, Mundka, Wazirpur.
• Area-specific action plans to address local sources of dust, traffic, and industrial emissions.
• The Green Delhi mobile app, allowing citizens to report violations like open burning, construction dust, and waste dumping.
• Deployment of smog guns and mechanised road sweeping in high-dust areas.

What went right: Recognising that pollution is not uniform across the city and focusing on hotspots was a modern, data-driven step. Citizen reporting brought accountability.

Limitations: The system still depends heavily on how quickly and consistently departments act on complaints.

Pusa Bio-Decomposer: Tackling Stubble Burning at the Source

Delhi partnered with the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Pusa to deploy a bio-decomposer solution that accelerates decomposition of crop residue, reducing the need to burn it.

While most stubble burning happens outside Delhi’s administrative boundary, funding bio-decomposer spraying in Delhi’s rural belts and advocating for its use in neighbouring states signalled a shift from blame to solutions for farmers.

What went right: It offered a low-cost, science-backed alternative that also improves soil health.

What’s still needed: Much wider adoption across Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, backed by finance, logistics, and market mechanisms.

EV Policy 2020 and the Push for Cleaner Mobility

Delhi’s EV Policy 2020 aims for a substantial share of new vehicles to be electric within a few years. It includes incentives for e-rickshaws, two-wheelers, commercial fleets, and charging stations, building on earlier moves toward CNG and Bharat Stage VI fuel.

What went right: Rapid growth in e-rickshaws and electric two-wheelers and strong symbolic leadership on clean mobility.

Gaps: Heavy commercial vehicles remain largely diesel, and last-mile connectivity gaps still push many people toward private vehicles.

Real-Time Source Apportionment and the “Supersite” Lab

Delhi has partnered with an IIT Kanpur–led consortium to establish a “supersite” laboratory and satellite stations for real-time source apportionment and air-quality forecasting.

This system aims to:

• Continuously measure PM2.5 and PM10 composition.
• Identify contributions from vehicles, industry, dust, biomass burning, and more.
• Provide near-real-time data to guide targeted interventions.

Why this matters: You cannot fix what you cannot accurately measure. Cities like Beijing used similar approaches to systematically cut emissions in specific sectors.

Winter Action Plans and GRAP Integration

Recent years have seen structured Winter Action Plans—21-point or 25-point frameworks that spell out specific actions on dust, vehicles, industry, waste burning, and enforcement. These are aligned with the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), a regional mechanism activated at different AQI stages.

Mechanised sweeping, construction guidelines, misting systems, and intensified checks now ramp up systematically as pollution levels cross thresholds, rather than being announced ad hoc.

New Technologies: Misting, Sprinklers, Cloud Seeding

Delhi has also tested a range of technology-based measures:

• Automatic misting systems along major corridors to reduce road dust resuspension.
• Anti-smog guns and overhead sprinklers in pollution hotspots.
• Cloud seeding trials with academic partners to stimulate artificial rain during peak smog episodes.

These can provide short-term relief in specific conditions, but global experience suggests they must supplement—not replace—structural reforms like cleaner fuels, better enforcement, and smarter planning.

Behavioural Measures: Staggered Timings and Citizen Tools

Steps like revising office timings for government departments to ease morning congestion, or using citizen-reporting apps to flag violations, reflect a softer but important approach: changing how and when people move and behave, not just what they drive.

At the same time, Delhi operates within a wider NCR and national framework involving the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), CPCB, and multiple state governments.

What Worked, What Didn’t – A Constructive View

What Has Worked (At Least Partially)

• Cleaner fuels and EV push: Over time, CNG, BS-VI, and EVs are reducing transport emissions per vehicle-kilometre.
• Hotspot-based planning: Focusing on the dirtiest pockets is more effective than treating the city as one uniform zone.
• Bio-decomposer solutions: They directly address a key seasonal emission source by changing agricultural practice rather than just penalising it.
• Real-time science: Supersite labs and detailed monitoring lay the groundwork for smarter, sector-specific policies.

What Hasn’t Worked as Well as Hoped

• Short-term, headline-heavy measures like smog towers and limited sprinkling deliver modest, localised benefits relative to cost.
• Odd–even schemes on their own cannot offset regional smoke, industrial emissions, or dust—they are narrow and time-bound.
• Enforcement gaps weaken otherwise strong rules on construction dust, waste burning, and industrial emissions.

What Needs to Be Done More Seriously

Relentless Dust Management: Construction and road dust are major contributors to coarse and fine particles. Strict enforcement of dust-control norms, contractor accountability, and real-time surveillance can dramatically cut this share.

Transforming Freight and Heavy Transport: Electric buses and cars are a start, but heavy trucks, diesel generators, and logistics hubs need targeted upgrades, cleaner fuels, and modernisation.

Urban Planning for Air, Not Just for Land: Preserving green belts, designing wind corridors, regulating high-rise clusters, and encouraging green building norms can improve airflow and reduce local pollution traps.

Regional Governance on Crop Residue: Long-term financing, residue-to-fuel markets, and agricultural reforms are needed at the inter-state and national levels to reduce smoke that travels across borders.

What Delhi Can Learn From Other Cities

London: Congestion Charging and Low Emission Zones

London introduced a congestion charge in central areas and later implemented Low Emission and Ultra Low Emission Zones that restrict or charge the most polluting vehicles. These policies led to measurable reductions in traffic-related pollutants and pushed faster adoption of cleaner engines.

Lesson for Delhi: Move gradually from odd–even toward emission-based road pricing in high-density zones, rewarding cleaner vehicles and phasing out the dirtiest ones.

Beijing: Consistent, Sector-Wise Clean-Up

Beijing’s progress came from years of consistent action: closing or upgrading coal plants, relocating heavy industry, tightening vehicle norms, and expanding public transport. PM2.5 levels fell significantly over a decade through this multi-pronged, persistent strategy.

Lesson for Delhi: There is no magic bullet. Many coordinated actions executed steadily over years produce meaningful results.

Los Angeles: Vehicle Emissions Over the Long Term

Los Angeles went from notorious smog to much cleaner air by enforcing strict vehicle emission standards, improving fuel quality, and investing in transit—despite having more cars than ever.

Lesson for Delhi: Strong enforcement of emission norms and regular inspection can make each new generation of vehicles exponentially cleaner.

Innovative Ideas Delhi Could Champion Next

Green Corridors for Airflow and Mobility: Design selected routes as low-emission, tree-lined corridors reserved for cleaner vehicles and public transport, while preserving wind pathways.

Neighborhood-Level Air Quality Contracts: Encourage RWAs, schools, and markets to commit to “clean air charters” (zero waste burning, compliant construction, green drives), with recognition and incentives attached.

Dynamic Traffic and Work Patterns: Expand staggered office timings, dynamic signal control, and flexible commuting options during high-pollution episodes to reduce peak congestion.

“Clean Construction” Certification: Give fast-track approvals or branding advantages to builders who consistently follow strict dust and emission norms.

Mass Public Awareness on Indoor Air: Educate citizens on how to improve indoor air—through ventilation timing, filtration, cleaner cooking, and simple maintenance—so households gain control over their own micro-environments.

Conclusion: Delhi Is Not Defined by Its Pollution, but by Its Capacity to Change

It’s easy to look at a hazy sky and feel discouraged. But history tells a more hopeful story:

• London’s infamous killer fogs are now a thing of the past.
• Los Angeles has far cleaner air than it did decades ago.
• Beijing has significantly reduced particulate levels through sustained action.

None of these cities became perfect—but all of them became better, through science, governance, public pressure, and innovation.

Delhi is already on that path. It has:

• Experimented with bold policies and public campaigns.
• Invested in cleaner mobility and real-time monitoring.
• Tested new technologies like cloud seeding and misting systems.
• Engaged in regional cooperation and learned from global examples.

Is everything working perfectly? No. Could things move faster and more consistently? Absolutely.

But the direction is clear: from reaction to planning, from blame to science, from quick fixes to structural change.

Air quality is not an unsolvable curse. It is a shared challenge—one Delhi is capable of confronting with intelligence, courage, and persistence.

The more clearly we understand what’s been done, what still needs to be done, and what the world has already learned, the better our chances of building a future where the air feels as vibrant as the city itself.