Hundreds of people staged an uncommon protest in Delhi on Sunday against deteriorating air pollution, as air quality continues worsening in India’s capital and surrounding regions.
Over the past three weeks, Delhi’s Air Quality Index, which measures levels of PM 2.5 or fine particulate matter in the air that can clog lungs, has fluctuated between 300 and 400, representing 20 to 30 times higher than the World Health Organization’s safe limit.
The protesters displayed banners and chanted slogans, demanding governmental action to reduce pollution.
Approximately 80 individuals were briefly detained near India Gate after police stated they lacked permission to assemble at the landmark.
“Our lungs are getting damaged. The government should declare it a health emergency until they find a solution to it,” a protester told news agency PTI.
Air quality in Delhi and its suburbs remains relatively poor throughout the year due to vehicular emissions, dust and industrial pollutants. However, the problem intensifies during winter months because of farmers burning crop stubble in neighbouring states, combined with low wind speed trapping pollutants close to the ground.
Though air pollution represents a recurring problem in northern India, this marked the first significant protest on the issue in considerable time.
On Monday morning, Delhi’s AQI reached 330 according to the federal government-run Safar app.
Levels between 101 and 200 are considered moderate, whilst those between 201 and 300 are “poor”. Between 301 and 400 is categorised as “very poor” and figures higher than 400 are considered “severe”.
However, readings were higher on other sources, such as private air quality monitors.
According to the Air Visual app operated by Swiss air quality technology company IQAir, Delhi’s pollution levels ranged between 414 and 507, which the app classified as hazardous.
On Sunday, close to 400 men and women of all ages, including children accompanying their parents, participated in the protest at India Gate.
Several demonstrators wore gas masks as a symbolic gesture of protest.
One banner read ‘Right to live, not just survive’, whilst another stated ‘Life in Delhi: Take birth, breathe, die’.
Police reported they detained around 80 people who were released later.
“India Gate is not a protest site. It is a high-security area,” senior Delhi Police officer Devesh Mahla told reporters, adding that all detained individuals were adults.
Several opposition leaders, university students, journalists and environmental activists were among the protesters.
“We have reached severe and hazardous levels of pollution, but the GRAP measures have not been implemented,” Delhi-based environmental activist Bhavreen Kandhari told PTI.
GRAP refers to the government’s Graded Response Action Plan to tackle air pollution in Delhi and its suburbs.
Currently, the second level of the action plan is in place. It imposes restrictions on the use of diesel generators and burning of coal and firewood.
The third level of the action plan, GRAP III, which would also ban all non-essential construction activities and the operation of diesel vehicles in Delhi, has yet to be imposed despite air quality levels worsening.
“This is about our children. My children will live 10 years less than their cousins in other cities who breathe cleaner air. We still have hope, and that’s why we are here,” Kandhari added.
Another protester told reporters that recent measures taken by the government, such as sprinkling water on roads and a recent unsuccessful cloud-seeding attempt, are not solving the problem. “The government should take the issue seriously,” he stated.
Delhi’s environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, however, said on Sunday night that the government was taking all possible steps to address the issue.
“We have installed anti-smog guns in all high-rise buildings, dust mitigation is being done across the city through water sprinklers, all construction sites are being monitored, and we have increased electric vehicles in Delhi’s fleet of public buses,” he stated in a video statement.
The protest’s rarity underscores both the severity of Delhi’s air quality crisis and the challenges citizens face when attempting to publicly demand governmental action in a country where large demonstrations require permissions that authorities can deny. The detentions, though temporary, highlight tensions between public expression rights and security concerns at sensitive locations.
The discrepancy between government and private air quality measurements raises questions about monitoring accuracy and transparency. Government figures showing AQI of 330 versus private monitors recording 414 to 507 represents a substantial difference that affects public understanding of health risks and appropriate protective measures.
The 20 to 30 times excess over WHO safe limits for sustained periods creates a public health emergency affecting millions of residents. Prolonged exposure to such pollution levels contributes to respiratory diseases, cardiovascular problems, reduced lung function in children, and premature mortality.
The seasonal pattern of worsening winter air quality, driven partly by agricultural burning in neighbouring states, illustrates the regional nature of the crisis requiring coordinated responses across state boundaries. Farmers burn stubble to quickly clear fields between harvest and planting seasons, a practice driven by economic pressures and lack of affordable alternatives.
