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Gasping for Air

Gasping for Air India lost 1.4 per cent of its GDP due to premature deaths and morbidity linked to pollution. The Lancet had collaborated with the Indian Council of Medical Research, Public Health Foundation of India and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation while crafting this report. Covid- 19, air pollution, power plants, public health, It would be less than appropriate to engage in a discourse on which of the two is more lethal. Yet figures for 2019, published recently in the reputed journal of science, The Lancet, are direly unnerving. It must be more than a little shocking to learn that air pollution resulted in 11 times the number of deaths around the world that year than the Covid- 19 pandemic in 2020. An enormous responsibility thus devolves on the pollution control authorities not merely to tackle the burning of stubble, as in north India, the bursting of crackers in Kolkata and other parts of the country during Diwali or for that matter the presence of noxious coal-fired power plants. Two years ago, the deaths on account of pollution had outnumbered the country’s Covid casualties this year by a substantial margin. The report states that 16.7 lakh people died due to pollution in 2019, much more than the 1.5 lakh claimed by Covid in 2020. In addition, India lost 1.4 per cent of its GDP due to premature deaths and morbidity linked to pollution. The Lancet had collaborated with the Indian Council of Medical Research, Public Health Foundation of India and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation while crafting this report. The report makes it clear that while public health authorities must combat the virus, they need to do more, much more, to tackle pollution which can only be addressed by the vaccine of development. This must be an unnerving thought on the first anniversary, so to speak, of Covid-19. As the world debates the efficacy of the corona vaccine, there is no such medical antidote against pollution. According to the medical fraternity, “air pollution has clearly emerged as one of the biggest killers in India. There is a long-drawn collective battle against it. A couple of doses of vaccine cannot prevent it. Covid-19 has occupied the lion’s share of our mindspace.” In the reckoning of the Centre for Science and Environment, pollution is particularly acute across the Indo-Gangetic plain. And then the stern caveat seemingly riveted to West Bengal ~ “Bengal being at the tail-end of the plain needs proactive steps to speed up action on transport, clean fuels in industry, clean power plants, waste management and biomass burning across the state.” Sad to reflect that West Bengal has failed on every parameter. Not wholly unrelated is what health authorities call an “alarming rise in non-smoking patients” basically because of indoor and outdoor pollution. “This is a bigger epidemic but currently going unnoticed because of our current obsession with Covid-19.” Such obsessions may seem to be a very humane response. While indoor pollution caused 64 per cent fewer deaths over the past two decades, outdoor pollution more than made up. Overall, the very real threat of air pollution needs to be addressed urgently.

Telangana among top three states producing unclean coal-based power: Study

Telangana among top three states producing unclean coal-based power: Study HYDERABAD: Telangana is among the top three states in the country producing and procuring unclean coal-based power that is severely affecting the environment, analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), Delhi, has found. The CSE's new state-wise assessment found West Bengal at the top in buying the 'dirtiest' coal power in the country followed by Telangana and Gujarat. In West Bengal, 84 per cent of power stations supplying power to the state are unclean. The percentage stands at 74 per cent in Telangana and 71 per cent in Gujarat. Most stations supplying electricity, especially state-run ones, have not taken adequate measures to comply with the sulphur-dioxide (SO2) emission norms notified by the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change issued in December 2015. These norms had to be complied with in 2017. "In Telangana, among the ones not complying with the norms are mostly state-run power plants by Telangana State Power Generation Corporation Limited. This includes the Kothagudem thermal power station and Singareni thermal power plant. Apart from this, unclean power is also sourced from power stations that are based outside Telangana," said Soundaram Ramanathan, deputy programme manager, industrial pollution unit, CSE. CSE divided power stations on the basis of compliance with SO2 norms. The ones awarded tenders for procuring environment-protective equipment are labelled 'yellow', those in the process of tendering or conducting a feasibility study have been labelled 'orange' and those with no plans have been labelled 'red'. Of all power stations, 74 per cent are orange and 26 per cent yellow in Telangana.

Karnataka: 3 units of Bellary Thermal Power Station ‘unclean’, finds study

Karnataka: 3 units of Bellary Thermal Power Station ‘unclean’, finds study HUBBALLI: Although it has been more than five years since the Union ministry of environment and forests and climate change issued a fresh set of guidelines for controlling the emission of polluting gases at power stations, many such units in Karnataka continue to violate these norms. A study conducted by the Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has classified three units of the Bellary Thermal Power Station (BTPS) as ‘unclean’. According to the colour code used by the researchers for the study, those units classified under ‘yellow’ are considered cleaner, while those marked ‘orange’ or ‘red’ are considered unclean and hence, dangerous. Units one, two and three at the BTPS have been grouped under the ‘orange’ class. Among the findings in the study submitted by the researchers is that BTPS has failed to check emissions of sulphur-di-oxide (SO2). The Union ministry’s norms show that unchecked SO2 emission is the indication of a very poorly maintained power station. The ministry’s norms also stipulate the upper limit for particulate matter in the air at the plant. Although BTPS has fared poorly in the assessment conducted by CSE, the eight units at the Raichur Thermal Power Station, UNITS OF YERAMARUS TPS, KUDGI STPS were classed by the researchers under the ‘yellow’ group. Since coal is a highly-polluting fuel, power stations, even those that do not fall within the administrative purview of non-attainment or polluted cities – the requirement is that, if these power stations are within a 300-km radius of such urban centres – they are required to ensure their operations are conducted in adherence to the norms. Highlighting the risk of failure to meet the norms, the study pointed out that it exposed a significant section of the populace in the vicinity of the stations to health hazards. Deputy programme manager of CSE Soundaram Ramanathan said that the data supplied by the Central Electricity Authority of the Union power ministry served as the basis for their study. “Environmental norms need to be followed everywhere, more so in a place such as Ballari, which is fairly POPULATED. With a modernised plant with a 700MW-capacity, BTPS must comply to the Union environment ministry’s norms at least by 2022,” Ramanthan told TOI. Roshna K, a senior research engineer for Centre for Study of Science, Technology and Policy, Bengaluru, said, “We were assured by the Karnataka Power Corporation Ltd that the process had already been initiated to ensure adherence to these rules. We are told that plant is planning to install it and the tendering process is initiated to control SO2 emissions. We hope that the operations at these stations are in compliance with all the rules by December 2022.” However, BTPS executive director Narendra Kumar said that he was unaware of such a study having been conducted. “We were not approached by anyone seeking details on the action we have taken to comply with environmental norms,” Kumar told TOI. ‘Ensure compliance to norms on priority’ Coal is a polluting fuel, and power plants must meet the rules laid down by the Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change on priority. The authorities concerned must work towards this, and region-specific plans need to be chalked out. This is a healthcare emergency. -Anumita Roychowdhury | Executive Director, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi

How East Africa can gain from India’s low-cost sustainable agriculture technique

Both India and Africa face common issues like degradation to cropland and environment, deteriorating farm economics and a pressure to feed a growing (and young) population, this presents an opportunity to collaborate and share experiences. It is particularly imperative to focus on farmers who own small-units of land, since such smallholder farmers comprise over 70% of cropland in both Africa and Asia. In this context, a low-cost sustainable agriculture method from India that can help Africa’s farmers is Community-Managed Natural Farming or CMNF (formerly Zero Budget Natural Farming). While some Indian states are practicing CMNF across a few districts, the state of Andhra Pradesh has made this a ‘state-wide policy’ and aims to convert all its 6 million farmers to CMNF. Incidentally, Andhra Pradesh’s CMNF programme has evinced initial interest from Africa, with Rwanda recently organising a knowledge-session on CMNF. What does Community-Managed Natural Farming involve? The CMNF method focuses on the concepts of regenerative agriculture (enabling the cropland to regenerate its natural nutrient cycle instead of being dependent on chemical pesticides/fertilisers and agroecology (studying the interactions between plant-types, human and environment, and its application to agriculture). Our conventional chemical-based farming system has had severe environmental and economic impact, including degradation of croplands, freshwater pollution, farmer debt and residue in crops. CMNF is a ‘package of practices’ that strengthens the regenerative capacity and sustainability of our soil, environment and farming system. CMNF uses low-cost inputs made from natural ingredients and bovine waste, instead of costly chemical fertilizers. Natural ingredients sourced from foods contain the sugars and proteins which micro-organisms need to thrive in the soil, while bovine waste contains a high content of beneficial micro-organisms. Chemical pesticides are replaced with natural or mechanical alternatives, including plants possessing pest-repelling qualities. CMNF involves techniques like inter-cropping/border-cropping, i.e. sowing a combination of crops that helps protect the farmers’ income. A combination of plants also enhances the soil’s nutrient capability. As micro-organisms thrive in the soil, it enhances a food-chain of organisms, insects and birds. This soil-food-web regenerates the soil’s nutrient cycle. Multiple plants at varying heights in the same farm cushion the sunlight on the exposed soil and smaller plants, reducing moisture evaporation. The application of all these natural inputs are based on certain combinations, and this forms the ‘natural farming’ part of CMNF. The other part of CMNF is the ‘community-managed’. Just like microfinance, CMNF is based on the social capital created by local communities and self-help groups. CMNF expands with knowledge-transfer. Africa and India have a large population and landmass, making it tough for a central team to execute single-handedly. Training the local communities in the CMNF practices and managerial capabilities helps them become the ‘foot-soldiers’, who then expand and supervise the programme to more villages. This institutional structure is instrumental in ensuring the knowledge-transfer quickly cascades a large landmass and population. A quick look at CMNF’s multiple advantages! First is cost. CMNF uses inputs that are low-cost and available locally. This reduces the cost to farm, critical for smallholder farmers. Not only does this reduce the debt burden, it also reduces the pressure of rural migration to cities in case the small farmers fail and are unable to repay their debt. In countries where the average per capita income is still low, a lower cost to farm is important. Next is volume. Weak institutional and market linkages frameworks force smallholders to depend on middlemen to sell their produce, reducing their bargaining power on pricing. On top of that, smallholders have limited volume which reduces their bargaining power further. Now, crop-cutting experiments in CMNF farms in Andhra Pradesh showed, on an average, a productivity improvement in the crops. Its 2019 presentation at the Centre for Science and Environment’s conclave showed a 14% rise in rice yield in sample CMNF farms vs. conventional farms during the 2018 summer crop cycle. This was 21% in maize, 34% each in groundnut and ragi (finger-millet) and 51% in sugarcane. An improvement in volume can help pricing-power, to some extent. Improvements in cost and volume helps boost the farmers’ net income. The same 2019 presentation showed a 51% rise in the net income of rice farmers in sample CMNF farms vs. conventional farms. This was 46% in maize, 83% in groundnut, 125% in ragi and 68% in sugarcane. These are encouraging numbers! CMNF also helps slow the damage to the environment. We have described how the process revives the natural nutrient cycle of the soil through the food-web of micro-organisms, which otherwise perished owing to the rampant use of chemicals. Water usage also reduces as the micro-organisms make the soil more porous, enabling better absorption of rainwater, movement of organisms and nutrients, resistance to cyclones due to a deeper root-system and resistance to drought. Health can gain. Crops produced without chemicals are free from residue, thus reducing incidents of illness. That implies lower medical bills, important in countries with a near-absence of state-sponsored social security and healthcare. There is also a policy advantage. Africa remains a net food importer, despite being home to a young and growing population. The reduction in cropland due to degradation adds to the pressure of food security. Scaling up low-cost, sustainable agriculture may be pragmatic. At the end, low-cost sustainable agriculture is a low-hanging fruit for diplomatic engagements.

How East Africa can gain from India’s low-cost sustainable agriculture technique

in both Africa and Asia. In this context, a low-cost sustainable agriculture method from India that can help Africa’s farmers is Community-Managed Natural Farming or CMNF (formerly Zero Budget Natural Farming). While some Indian states are practicing CMNF across a few districts, the state of Andhra Pradesh has made this a ‘state-wide policy’ and aims to convert all its 6 million farmers to CMNF. Incidentally, Andhra Pradesh’s CMNF programme has evinced initial interest from Africa, with Rwanda recently organising a knowledge-session on CMNF. What does Community-Managed Natural Farming involve? The CMNF method focuses on the concepts of regenerative agriculture (enabling the cropland to regenerate its natural nutrient cycle instead of being dependent on chemical pesticides/fertilisers and agroecology (studying the interactions between plant-types, human and environment, and its application to agriculture). Our conventional chemical-based farming system has had severe environmental and economic impact, including degradation of croplands, freshwater pollution, farmer debt and residue in crops. CMNF is a ‘package of practices’ that strengthens the regenerative capacity and sustainability of our soil, environment and farming system. CMNF uses low-cost inputs made from natural ingredients and bovine waste, instead of costly chemical fertilizers. Natural ingredients sourced from foods contain the sugars and proteins which micro-organisms need to thrive in the soil, while bovine waste contains a high content of beneficial micro-organisms. Chemical pesticides are replaced with natural or mechanical alternatives, including plants possessing pest-repelling qualities. CMNF involves techniques like inter-cropping/border-cropping, i.e. sowing a combination of crops that helps protect the farmers’ income. A combination of plants also enhances the soil’s nutrient capability. As micro-organisms thrive in the soil, it enhances a food-chain of organisms, insects and birds. This soil-food-web regenerates the soil’s nutrient cycle. Multiple plants at varying heights in the same farm cushion the sunlight on the exposed soil and smaller plants, reducing moisture evaporation. The application of all these natural inputs are based on certain combinations, and this forms the ‘natural farming’ part of CMNF. The other part of CMNF is the ‘community-managed’. Just like microfinance, CMNF is based on the social capital created by local communities and self-help groups. CMNF expands with knowledge-transfer. Africa and India have a large population and landmass, making it tough for a central team to execute single-handedly. Training the local communities in the CMNF practices and managerial capabilities helps them become the ‘foot-soldiers’, who then expand and supervise the programme to more villages. This institutional structure is instrumental in ensuring the knowledge-transfer quickly cascades a large landmass and population. A quick look at CMNF’s multiple advantages! First is cost. CMNF uses inputs that are low-cost and available locally. This reduces the cost to farm, critical for smallholder farmers. Not only does this reduce the debt burden, it also reduces the pressure of rural migration to cities in case the small farmers fail and are unable to repay their debt. In countries where the average per capita income is still low, a lower cost to farm is important. Next is volume. Weak institutional and market linkages frameworks force smallholders to depend on middlemen to sell their produce, reducing their bargaining power on pricing. On top of that, smallholders have limited volume which reduces their bargaining power further. Now, crop-cutting experiments in CMNF farms in Andhra Pradesh showed, on an average, a productivity improvement in the crops. Its 2019 presentation at the Centre for Science and Environment’s conclave showed a 14% rise in rice yield in sample CMNF farms vs. conventional farms during the 2018 summer crop cycle. This was 21% in maize, 34% each in groundnut and ragi (finger-millet) and 51% in sugarcane. An improvement in volume can help pricing-power, to some extent. Improvements in cost and volume helps boost the farmers’ net income. The same 2019 presentation showed a 51% rise in the net income of rice farmers in sample CMNF farms vs. conventional farms. This was 46% in maize, 83% in groundnut, 125% in ragi and 68% in sugarcane. These are encouraging numbers! CMNF also helps slow the damage to the environment. We have described how the process revives the natural nutrient cycle of the soil through the food-web of micro-organisms, which otherwise perished owing to the rampant use of chemicals. Water usage also reduces as the micro-organisms make the soil more porous, enabling better absorption of rainwater, movement of organisms and nutrients, resistance to cyclones due to a deeper root-system and resistance to drought. Health can gain. Crops produced without chemicals are free from residue, thus reducing incidents of illness. That implies lower medical bills, important in countries with a near-absence of state-sponsored social security and healthcare. There is also a policy advantage. Africa remains a net food importer, despite being home to a young and growing population. The reduction in cropland due to degradation adds to the pressure of food security. Scaling up low-cost, sustainable agriculture may be pragmatic. At the end, low-cost sustainable agriculture is a low-hanging fruit for diplomatic engagements. | January 5, 2021

Air pollution much bigger killer than Covid in India, finds study

Air pollution much bigger killer than Covid in India, finds study KOLKATA: Air pollution caused nearly 13 times the number of deaths in 2019 than the raging Covid-19 pandemic the following year in Bengal, according to a recent report published by The Lancet. And it’s not just Bengal. The overall pollution-related deaths outnumber the countrywide Covid death figure by a huge margin. Track the pollution level in your city According to the ‘December 2020 Lancet Planetary Health Report’, 9,712 people died of Covid in Bengal last year, whereas pollution claimed 1.2 lakh lives (1,22,833 people) in 2019 and caused an economic loss of around Rs 15,516 crore. Looking at the data, it’s clear which is the bigger killer across the country, even in a pandemic-ravaged year. Across India, there were as many as 16.7 lakh deaths attributable to pollution in 2019, while Covid caused 1.5 lakh deaths in 2020, according to data sourced from all state governments and the Centre. Among the institutions that The Lancet collaborated with for the survey was Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which is at the forefront of strategizing the medical fraternity’s response to Covid-19 in the country. Of the total deaths attributable to air pollution in India in 2019, the largest proportions were due to COPD (32.5%) and ischaemic heart disease (29.2%), followed by stroke (16.2%) and lower respiratory infections (11.2%). Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Bengal and Rajasthan accounted for over 50% of the air pollution-attributable deaths in India, according to data from The Lancet’s report that was was conducted under the India State-Level Disease Burden Initiative by ICMR, Public Health Foundation of India and Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. The estimation of the economic impact of air pollution, as the cost of lost output due to premature deaths and morbidity attributable to air pollution for every state of India, was done using the cost-of-illness method. “Air pollution has clearly emerged as one of the biggest killers in India. Its impact on our economy is far-reaching. There is a long-drawn collective battle against it. A couple of doses of vaccine cannot prevent it. When Covid-19 has occupied the lion’s share of our mind space, The Lancet study is a grim reminder of what we are missing out on,” said Dr Arun Sharma, public health expert and professor of community medicine, University College of Medical Science, New Delhi. “Air pollution is a major problem across India, and a much bigger issue across the Indo-Gangetic plain,” said Centre for Science and Environment executive director and air pollution expert Anumita Roychowdhury. “Bengal being at the tail end of the plain needs proactive steps to speed up action on transport, clean fuels in industry, clean power plants, waste management and biomass burning across the state.” Doctors, too, have reported an alarming rise in non-smoking COPD patients, primarily due to indoor and outdoor pollution. “This is a bigger epidemic but currently going unnoticed because of our current obsession with Covid-19. The fast declining air quality in our urban areas has made even breathing injurious to health,” said Dr Arup Haldar, a senior pulmonologist with Woodlands Hospital. Bengal Clean Air Network (Bengal CAN), which is spearheading a movement for better environment, is concerned about the current state of air quality in Bengal and the economic risk it poses to the population. “We need an all-out collective effort to clean up the air,” said Vinay Jaju of Bengal CAN.

'Chinese-designed syrup can bypass Indian standards,' says Sunita Narain on adulterated honey

'Chinese-designed syrup can bypass Indian standards,' says Sunita Narain on adulterated honey Ten out of 13 brands of raw and processed honey had failed a purity test conducted using a German technology called Nuclear Magnetic Resonance test in December 2020. Early in December, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) released a report claiming that 10 out of 13 brands of raw and processed honey failed a purity test conducted using a German technology called Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) test. The report claimed that these 10 brands were adulterated with a Chinese sugar syrup that is purportedly designed to by-pass parameters set by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). To discuss this report, Times Now’s Kasturi Sharma spoke to the Director-General of CSE, Ms Sunita Narain. Kasturi Sharma: Thank you for speaking to Times Now. First of all, could you please explain the recent findings of the Centre for Science and Environment on the issue of adulterated honey in India and how concerned should consumers be if your findings are believed to be true? Sunita Narain: So, the CSE has done this investigation on the popular honey that we are eating, and we have been shocked to find that the honey is actually adulterated with sugar syrup. Now the worst part of the study is that this adulteration is so sophisticated that it cannot be caught with by Indian laboratories using Indian standards. And the reason it is so sophisticated is that the Chinese have designed the syrup in a way that it can bypass the Indian standards. Okay. So this is why it is so dangerous and it is something that needs to be dealt with because it is obviously having a very bad impact on our health. Just imagine. You have increased your intake of honey because of COVID-19. Today, every house is taking honey because it helps to build immunity. But instead of the honey, you are taking, you are actually taking sugar syrup. Now, just think about the impact on your health. You are taking sugar, not honey. And this will make you fat. And in fact, now it is also understood that if you are fat or overweight, you are more at risk to COVID-19. So you have actually increased your risks both – one you are taking more honey because to build immunity against COVID-19 – and two that honey not being honey but sugar – you are actually getting more at risk to COVID-19. So, it is a really bad impact on our health. Now, what did CSE find? We were tracking this issue of syrup because we heard from beekeepers that they were losing revenue and …that they were not selling honey at all. So we were concerned that if the beekeepers are not selling honey, there must be something happening. Because after all, our honey consumption is increasing, then why are beekeepers not being able to sell honey? And that’s when we investigated that there is this syrup that is there. We contacted the Chinese companies, we managed to procure the syrup. We also got the syrup from a company in Uttarakhand, in Jaspur, and using that we adulterated the honey, raw honey, put the sugar syrup in it and we sent it to a laboratory and in the laboratory that honey passed the Indian test. So, you can imagine. Taking the sugar syrup from an industrial complex mixed it with honey and it has passed the laboratory test. Now, this is why we took 13 Indian brands, top brands and some smaller brands and we had first sent the samples to an Indian laboratory for testing where they also passed the test. Then we sent the same samples to a German laboratory, to do an NMR test over there, and most of the samples failed the advanced test. So whereas they had passed the Indian test, they failed the test in Germany which proves our point that the syrup that is being used in the honey is designed to bypass the Indian test. And it can be only caught by using a more sophisticated testing methodology, which we did when we sent it to Germany. Kasturi Sharma: What has been the government’s stand in all of this? How has the government responded to your investigation? Sunita Narain: We have had a meeting with FSSAI, we have informed them. Now, FSSAI was the original whistleblower. Because if you look at it, the government clearly knew that something was happening. In December last year, FSSAI wrote to state food commissioners saying please step up your actions, we know that some adulteration is happening because of sugar syrup. Okay. Then we know that FSSAI followed this up in February and then in this June it actually wrote to the importers of sugar syrup saying we know some syrup is coming in from abroad which is being used to adulterate honey, please inform us about the end product of your use of the syrup. So FSSAI knew something was happening.

हवा सुधारने को बने आयोग का दावा हवाहवाई

ददल्ली-एनसीआर की प्रदषूषत हवा सुधारनेके ललए गदठत 18 सदस्यीय आयोग हवाहवाई ही साबित हो रहा है। कहनेको तो इसके गठन को दो माह होनेको हैं, लेककन इसके अजस्तत्व का एहसास कहीीं पर नहीीं होता। सिसेिड़ी िात यह हैकक इस आयोग का अभी तक कोई स्थायी कायािलय तक नहीीं खुला , जिकक जमेजमाए प्रदषूण ननयींिण एवीं पयािवरण सींरक्षण प्रार्धकरण (ईपीसीए) को खत्म कर ददया गया। आलम यह हैकक हवा को काला करनेवालेभयमुक्त नजर आनेलगेहैं। इस साल सददियों के प्रदषूण की रोकथाम के ललए ककसी तरह की गनतषवर्धयों पर भी खास प्रनतिींध नहीीं लगा। िस जि-ति सीपीसीिी ही छोर्ेमोर्ेददशा ननदेश जारी करके इनतश्री कर लेता है। अि तो आम लोग भी चुर्की लेनेलगेहैंकक शायद ईपीसीए अध्यक्ष भूरेलाल व सदस्य सुनीता नारायण की ‘सख्ती’ खत्म करनेके ललए ही इस आयोग का गठन ककया गया है।

Air pollution in Delhi-NCR: Lockdown gains made and lost

From May 18 to June 5, the AQI remained in the “moderate” category. From July to September, monsoon rains kept pollution levels in check. A near-halt in normal life and economic activity, aimed at slowing down COVID-19 spread, yielded clear blue skies in Delhi, among one of the most-polluted cities across the world. However, the gains from the COVID-19 lockdown did not last long as economic activity sputtered back to life, and air pollution returned to the city''s usual high levels, making the pandemic worse. During the lockdown period without any major relaxations — between March 25 and May 18 — pollution levels in Delhi reduced drastically and the air quality index (AQI) remained in the “satisfactory” category for most of the time. “In Delhi-NCR, one of the major factors that led to the drop in pollution was a 97% reduction in overall traffic and 91% reduction in trucks and commercial vehicles entering the capital during April, as compared to the pre-lockdown months of December-January,” the Centre for Science and Environment said in a report. From May 18 to June 5, the AQI remained in the “moderate” category. From July to September, monsoon rains kept pollution levels in check. At an average AQI of 63.8, August was the cleanest month of the year in terms of air quality. There were four “good” air days in August, the highest in any month since 2015, when the CPCB began monitoring AQI. By October end, the air turned "severe" again, raising concerns among health experts about its impact on the coronavirus patients. It prompted the Delhi government to launch a massive anti-air pollution campaign - "Yuddh Pradushan Ke Viruddh" - under the leadership of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Environment Minister Gopal Rai. In an effort to curb air pollution levels in the city, Mr. Kejriwal banned firecrackers in the national capital ahead of Diwali, and promised to ramp-up critical health infrastructure in State-run hospitals, citing links between rising air pollution and a surge in coronavirus cases in Delhi. The Indian Medical Association said in November that “13% of the recent COVID-19 cases may be linked to air pollution”. As pollutions levels breached the emergency threshold twice in the month, a grey apocalyptic smog enveloped Delhi for days, blotting out the sun from the sky and smudging landmarks from view. According to the CPCB, the city recorded 10 “severe” air days this November, the maximum number in the month in four years, largely due to lesser precipitation and large-scale stubble burning. Pollution levels on Diwali this year and the day after were the maximum in the last four years despite a ban on firecrackers