In an ongoing hearing, the Supreme Court of India has decried the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) for not serving its purpose. The Commission was set up in 2021 through an ordinance after the Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act 2021 was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 30, 2021. What the apex court has observed is that three years, millions of dollars, and several opportunities have gone down the drain while India's capital, yet again, prepares to choke.
People of New Delhi, policymakers and plebeians alike, seem to have eased into the city's toxicity: polluters continue to pollute without any fear of penalty or punishment, and the wealthy find ways to avoid being in the city during the choke months - November to February. The world, however, is watching the poison in Delhi's air with a bated breath.
Earlier this year, New Delhi was adjudged to be the most polluted capital city in the world, according to the sixth Annual World Air Quality Report. The city's air has PM2.5 concentrations that are more than ten times the WHO annual guideline. This factoid on paper reads straight out of a dystopian work. The US Department of State categorises New Delhi as a city that merits a "Post (Hardship) Differential" allowance. The hardship allowance for........