Delhi assembly elections: Why toxic air may not let contenders breathe easy

NEW DELHI: In 2015, when the assembly elections neared, very few voters in Delhi were aware of how severe the problem of air pollution had become. At the time, the city only had seven air monitoring stations and the now easily recognised benchmark, CPCB’s Air Quality Index, or AQI, was yet to be launched. Five years later, pollution has acquired a social dimension of its own — so much so that it has become an election issue.
Since 2015, Delhi has added 31 more air quality monitoring stations, an indication that the problem is regarded with the seriousness it deserves.Last month, the United Residents Joint Action (URJA), an umbrella body of residents’ welfare associations, released a nine-point People’s Manifesto on Clean Air 2020, signifying that RWAs are becoming vocal about the urgency in finding solutions to the capital’s bad air. The three prominent political parties in the fray, namely the Aam Aadmi Party, Congress and BJP, have agreed to incorporate points from URJA’s manifesto in their own.
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Atul Goyal, president, URJA, disclosed that its manifesto was drafted after consulting a number of RWAs over three-four years. “Construction dust and vehicular pollution are problems throughout the year. They affect the whole of Delhi,” observed Goyal. “We have not had any respite from these two woes. In order to tackle Delhi’s air pollution, the state government needs to be committed to the cause of decongesting the city, switching to cleaner fuels, reducing vehicles on the road and improving public transport. Our green manifesto also asks for better cooperation with neighbouring states instead of indulging in a blame game.”
Amit Aggarwal, a Vasant Kunj resident, said the public had begun to contribute to the fight against pollution, but the government needed to do a lot more to boost Delhi’s air quality. “I got rid of my 15-year-old car though it was in perfect running condition and I used it for only a kilometre or two each day,” the IT consultant said. “As a citizen, I did my bit, but I am not seeing the returns in terms of improved air quality. Since so much more obviously needs to be done, why not tie the perks of MLAs to air quality in some manner?”
In New Friends Colony, which falls in the Okhla assembly constituency, people complain about the area’s consistently high AQI. Okhla is one among 13 pollution hotspots identified by Delhi Pollution Control Committee in 2019. The others are Narela, Bawana, Mundka, Punjabi Bagh, Dwarka, Wazirpur, Rohini, Vivek Vihar, Anand Vihar, R K Puram, Jahangirpuri and Ashok Vihar.
Madhavi Sachar, who lives in New Friends Colony, said people were becoming more conscious of pollution but felt the government needed to act strong a for sustained fight. “Measures like cars with odd-even licence plates using the road on alternate days raise awareness and cut emissions, but it’s tough to say what is being done in concrete terms to counter pollution,” she said. “Political parties now know they cannot get away with ignoring pollution.”
In Dwarka, numerous anti-pollution protests have taken place in the last five years. From strong voices against felling trees to build the Dwarka Expressway to demanding the Bharat Vandana Park as an eco space, residents have been trying to stave off the reduction in green cover in the sub-city. “We are vocal because the government has to take strong measures to preserve trees and improve the air quality. So far, only the reverse is happening,” said V Selvarajan, a local.
Many people feel air pollution as an election imperative is discussed only by the elite, with voters in the economically lower categories focused more on existential problems like water, electricity and sewage. “You may not see people in Seelampur or Jahangirpuri worrying about pollution so much. Those who are anxious about the air quality are too few to make an impact on the elections,” rued Bhavreen Kandhari in Defence Colony.
Kandhari, however, is happy air pollution has emerged as a talking point now. “The state government is taking notice of the protests and the voices against the bad air. We expect the party that comes to power to focus on decongesting Delhi, reducing air pollution and improving waste management,” said a hopeful Kandhari.