Page 14 - Air Pollution

Toxic fumes in aircraft cabins? WSJ finds link to brain fog, rising illness

Aviation experts and crew warn of toxic fume events in aircraft cabins as WSJ finds rising reports of brain fog, nerve damage and respiratory illness

Ozone layer on track to return to 1980s levels by mid-century: WMO report

The Earth's protective ozone layer is on track to return to 1980s levels by the middle of this century, with the 2024 Antarctic ozone hole smaller than in recent years, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said in a new report. The WMO Ozone Bulletin 2024 said lower ozone depletion this year was partly due to natural atmospheric factors but stressed the long-term improvement reflects the success of global action. The bulletin was released on World Ozone Day, which also marked the 40th anniversary of the Vienna Convention that laid the foundation for international cooperation on ozone protection. "Forty years ago, nations came together to take the first step in protecting the ozone layer, guided by science, united in action," said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. "The Vienna Convention and its Montreal Protocol became a landmark of multilateral success. Today, the ozone layer is healing. This achievement reminds us that when nations heed the warnings of science, progres

Fighting air pollution will take more than masks and symbolic fixes

The human cost is staggering. If India were to bring its pollution levels down to WHO norms, life expectancy will increase for everyone

Delhi-NCR residents lose over 8 years of life to toxic air, says study

According to the AQLI 2025 report, Indians breathe air worse than WHO's safe limits, losing 3.5 years of life expectancy, up to double in Delhi, Bihar, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh

Air pollution shortens average Indian's life by 3.5 years: Report

All of India's 1.4 billion people live in areas where annual average particulate pollution levels exceed the WHO guideline and even those in the cleanest regions of the country could live 9.4 months longer if the air quality met global standards, according to a new report. The Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago's (EPIC) 2025 report said PM2.5 concentrations in India in 2023 were higher than in 2022. These levels are more than eight times higher than the WHO guideline and reducing them to permanently meet the global standard would add 3.5 years to the average life expectancy of Indians. According to the WHO's 2021 air quality guideline, the annual average limit for PM2.5 is 5 micrograms per cubic metre, while for PM10 it is 15 micrograms per cubic metre. These limits are far stricter than India's own standards, which currently allow 40 micrograms for PM2.5 and 60 micrograms for PM10. The report said 46 per cent of India's population lives in areas where annual PM2

Heat-house plants: Lack of anti-polluting FGD systems in TPPs a concern

These alarming figures underscore the urgent need for stronger environmental policies

Tharoor urges Centre, states to align efforts for clean air solutions

Batting for concerted action to tackle air pollution, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has called on the Central government and states to work together, alongside experts, industry, civil society and citizens, to align efforts and implement scalable solutions -- from clean transport to cleaner fuels. Noting that air pollution transcends economic, social and political divides and is both a grave public health crisis and an environmental emergency, Tharoor said it demands not just our best ideas, but our collective courage and concerted action across sectors and states. The Thiruvananthapuram MP made the remarks at a high-level roundtable on 'Clean Air and Public Health: Advancing Collective Action' at the India Habitat Centre here on Tuesday. Hosted by Tharoor and convened by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and AirQualityAsia (AQA), the dialogue was the seventh such roundtable since 2017 that brings together India's leading air quality experts, policymakers, health ...

The solution to urban congestion is mass transit systems, not more roads

To beat the trauma of congestion, we need to understand its political economy

Delhi gets cleanest July air in 7 years as average AQI drops to 78: CAQM

Delhi recorded its cleanest July air in seven years with the average Air Quality Index (AQI) falling to 78, in the 'satisfactory' category, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) said on Thursday. The AQI this July was even better than 2020, when pollution levels had dropped significantly due to restrictions on movement and industrial activity during to the COVID-19 lockdown. According to the CAQM, the average AQI for July in previous years stood at 104 in 2018, 134 in 2019, 84 in 2020, 110 in 2021, 87 in 2022, 84 in 2023 and 96 in 2024. The month also saw the highest number of days with 'satisfactory' air quality, 29 this year compared to 16 in 2018, 12 in 2019, 25 in 2020, 20 in 2021, 25 in 2022, 26 in 2023 and 17 in 2024. For the January-July period, Delhi reported significant improvement in air quality with the average AQI dropping to 184 from 204 in 2024 and 183 in 2023. The AQI during the same period was 209 in 2022, 205 in 2021, 159 in 2020, 215 in 2019 and 217 in

MoEFCC utilises 13% of ₹621 crore in environmental protection fund

Rs 138.38 crore has been committed to 24 projects, with Rs 117.2 crore still available for use

Delhi-NCR records cleanest July in a decade, AQI remains 'satisfactory'

Among the monitoring stations, Punjabi Bagh recorded the lowest AQI at 50, followed closely by Bawana at 51 and Vivek Vihar at 55. All three readings fall in the 'good' category

Formula 1 renewable energy shift drives 26% drop in carbon footprint

Often referred to as the pinnacle of motorsport, the racecar organisation, which hosts an annual championship featuring the best drivers in the world, has seen its carbon emissions drop 26% since 2018

Coal, clean air, and a welcome resolution on India's emission norms

The changes to India's policy on emissions from coal plants are not a rollback - but a confident assertion of regulatory maturity, scientific integrity, and rational national interest

Can agglomeration logic still help our people-dense, infra-scarce cities?

Urban agglomeration has long been assumed to lead naturally to growth, but India's failing infrastructure and environmental stress tell a different story

Delhi declares war on air pollution with full-year ban on firecrackers

DPCC imposes year-round firecracker ban in Delhi; police halt online sales, warn of legal action; DRI seizes ₹35 crore worth of smuggled Chinese fireworks in crackdown

What are end-of-life vehicles and why are they being pushed off the roads?

Ban on End-of-Life Vehicles will apply in Delhi and five adjoining NCR districts from November 1; ANPR cameras, VAHAN database to help identify violators and enforce scrapping policy

80% of vehicle owners in Delhi against fuel ban on old vehicles: Survey

A majority of Delhi vehicle owners oppose fuel ban on old vehicles, calling it unfair. They urge the government to focus on better pollution controls like curbing stubble burning & dust emissions

13% babies in India born prematurely, 17% with low weight: Health survey

India's demographic health survey 2019-21 reveals that 13 per cent of children were born prematurely, and 17 per cent with a low weight at birth, with air pollution contributing to the adverse birth outcomes. Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, and institutes in the UK and Ireland looked at the National Family Health Survey-5 and remote sensing data to analyse how exposure to air pollution in pregnancy impacted the delivery outcomes. The team found that an increased exposure to PM2.5 during pregnancy was related with a 40 per cent chance of low birth weight, and 70 per cent of premature delivery. Climate conditions, such as rainfall and temperature, were found to have a greater link with adverse birth outcomes. The study, published in the journal PLoS Global Public Health, also found that children living in the northern districts of India could be more vulnerable to the ambient air pollution. Measurin

Explained: How a ₹3.21 crore artificial rain project could clear Delhi’s toxic air | Delhi pollution

Delhi is set to launch its first artificial rain pilot project using cloud seeding technology in collaboration with IIT-Kanpur and IMD. With pollution levels routinely breaching safe limits, this expe

Delhi to launch ₹3.21 crore artificial rain project: How it will be done

Backed by IIT-Kanpur and IMD, the ₹3.21 crore project aims to trigger artificial rain over Delhi using cloud seeding technology to reduce PM levels and build evidence for future urban use