Most polluted city in India
With the onset of winter, the risk of air pollution increases in many big cities of India including Delhi and Mumbai. China’s cities were the most polluted in the world about 6 years ago. In 2017, air quality tracker AQair included 75 cities in China and 17 cities in India in the list of cities with the worst air quality in the world. However, after six years this situation completely changed. Among the 100 most polluted cities in the year 2022, India had 65 and China had only 16. China improved the situation by reducing the number of vehicles and coal power plants. According to AQair report, in the 30 days before November 9, the average level of PM 2.5 in Delhi was 14 times higher than Beijing.
21 lakh Indians die every year due to pollution
According to a report released last week, 21 lakh Indians die every year in India due to air pollution. This figure was 16 lakh in 2019. According to a World Bank report published in June, the country’s GDP suffers an annual loss of 0.56% due to micro particles increasing every year in India, as it reduces the productivity of workers. About a decade ago, many big cities of China were struggling with air pollution. The data released by the American Embassy revealed the serious situation there. Following public demonstrations in China in 2014, Chinese President Xi Jinping acknowledged that one of Beijing’s biggest problems is air pollution. After this, China took many important steps.
What steps did China take to stop pollution?
China made a national level mega action plan to stop air pollution. China created an emergency fund of about Rs 22.5 lakh crore to fight pollution. Reduction in the number of vehicles in big cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Made strict rules on pollution for heavy industries like iron and steel industries. China closed many coal power plants and also banned building such new ones. According to the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago, China’s decisions led to a 42.3% reduction in air pollution in China from 2013 to 2021. Due to China’s reduction in pollution, the world also saw a reduction in pollution.
Those working in the open are hit the hardest by pollution.
People who work outdoors have been hit the hardest by the heavy air pollution in Delhi. Common people in Delhi do not have luxury items like air purifiers and effective masks. Experts say that the government is also making efforts to stop burning of crop stubble. To prevent pollution, odd-even rules and smog towers have been installed at many places in Delhi, but these efforts are not enough. Big steps will have to be taken for this. Vehicles will have to be reduced from the roads of Delhi and crop rotation will have to be changed, so that the problem of stubble burning does not arise. The central government launched the National Clean Air Program in 2019 to help small cities reduce pollution. Cities have focused on running electric and natural gas-powered buses in public transport. There are 12 thousand e-buses running in the country, there is a plan to increase their number to 50 thousand by 2027.
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