Air Quality in Delhi Assignment Report

Running Head: AIR QUALITY 1
Air quality in Delhi, India
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AIR QUALITY 2
Introduction
Most big cities in the world are experiencing an inferior quality of air. Most of
these cities are industrialized cities where the rate of air pollution is very high.
According to a survey conducted by World Health Organization (WHO) involving
1650 cities across the globe, Delhi, the capital city of India, has the worst air quality
in the world (Amann et al., 2017). WHO estimates that air pollution kills
approximately 2 million people every year in India alone. This makes it the fifth
largest killer in India, and the country has the highest death rate from chronic
respiratory diseases and asthma (Sagar et al., 2016). The poor quality of air results in
irreparable lung damage of 2.2 million children per year, which is approximately 50%
of the children in the country (Slutsky, 2017). This paper describes the driving forces
behind the poor quality of air in Delhi using the WHO DPSEEA framework. The
second part of the document discusses how the issue is being managed, and the role
played by various agencies in improving the situation. The suggestions that are
appropriate in addressing the current gaps in policies and regulations are also
provided in this paper.
Part 1
The driving forces which cause poor air quality in Delhi are population growth
and economic development of the city. The population of Delhi has soared massively
over the past two decades. Delhi is currently the second most populous city in the
world after Tokyo, with an estimated population of 30 million people (Khullar &
Gupta, 2017). The city is expected to become the most populous globally by the year

AIR QUALITY 3
2028, with a population of almost 40million people. The growth in the population has
resulted in pressure on the environment and hence contributing to the poor quality of
indoor and outdoor air. Additionally, the massive population of Delhi has increased
the demand for public transport, which has contributed to the huge pollution of air in
the city. The economic development of the city is the other driving force behind the
growth in the economic growth of the city is at 11.5% annually between the year
2013-2018. Delhi is the largest commercial center in India, and it has an economy of
approximately$369 billion. These factors have therefore contributed to poor quality of
air.
There exist several pressures which have contributed to the poor quality of air in
Delhi. The increase in population has led to a rise in demand for transportation. Motor
vehicle emissions, therefore, contribute significantly to air pollution in Delhi because
of the vast number of vehicles operating in the city of Delhi (Sehgal, Tyagi &
Gautam, 2016). The Badarpur Thermal Power station is also a significant contributor
to air pollution in Delhi. This is because the plant uses coal power, which produces
very dirty air and hence polluting the entire city. Burning of garbages, some of which
burn throughout the year, is also another pressure contributing to poor air quality in
Delhi. The other pressure is air pollution as a result of the growth in the
manufacturing sector, which leads to increased emissions of poor quality air.
As a result of the pressures discussed above, complex and far-reaching changes
occur to the environment around Delhi and beyond. As a result of the pollution in
Delhi, water pollution also occurs because air pollution results in acid rain, which is
dangerous for animals as well as crops. The environmental changes in Delhi have also
resulted in changes in weather patterns in Delhi and hence affecting agricultural