From Choke to Change: Can India Clear the Air?

India’s capital is once again choking under a thick blanket of smog, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi hovering near 400—well into the ‘severe’ zone. Despite a ₹3 crore cloud seeding experiment, pollution levels remain dangerously high, prompting widespread concern and political appeals for immediate intervention.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra publicly urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta to take decisive steps, calling the pollution a “grey shroud” over the city. Meanwhile, experts argue that symbolic measures are no longer enough. They emphasize the need for regionally coordinated, long-term strategies targeting stubble burning, vehicular emissions, and industrial pollutants.

Important points:

• Delhi’s AQI nears 400; cloud seeding efforts fail to improve air quality  
• Priyanka Gandhi calls for urgent, cross-party action to address the crisis  
• Experts label air pollution a “public health catastrophe” and “national security threat”  
• Nearly 2 million deaths in India in 2023 linked to air pollution (State of Global Air report)  
• Long-term solutions needed: stricter emission norms, sustainable transport, and crop residue management  

Sources: The Week, Indian Express, New Indian Express, Economic Times, Drishti IAS