Скачать или смотреть Delhi Air turns Toxic again post Diwali | What are the long-term solutions?

Every year after Diwali, Delhi’s air turns toxic and this year is no different. The celebrations may be over, but what follows is a thick blanket of smog that refuses to lift.
In response, the Commission for Air Quality Management, or CAQM, has now activated Stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan across the entire National Capital Region.

Stage II measures begin when the Air Quality Index falls between 301 and 400, marking very poor air. Under this phase, authorities have rolled out a 12-point emergency action plan, building on Stage I steps already in force.
Municipal bodies have been directed to intensify road cleaning through mechanical and vacuum sweeping, and to conduct regular water sprinkling especially in pollution hotspots and along heavy traffic corridors.

Construction sites are under tighter scrutiny with strict dust control inspections.
Traffic management is also a key focus. Parking fees are being increased to discourage private vehicles, while authorities are expanding public transport options by adding more CNG and electric buses and increasing metro frequency to handle the extra load.
Despite all these steps, experts warn that weather conditions like stagnant air and low wind speeds make pollution control even harder in the days following Diwali. That’s why Delhi is also exploring an unusual scientific fix, artificial rain.
In collaboration with IIT Kanpur, the city plans to use cloud seeding technology to induce rainfall. A modified Cessna-206H aircraft will spray silver iodide particles into moisture-bearing clouds to trigger rain.

Let’s hear from Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment, who explains why Delhi often turns to emergency measures like cloud seeding instead of long-term pollution control. She says the capital continues to depend on short-term crisis responses because structural reforms in transport, waste management, and industrial emissions are still slow to take shape.

After Diwali, Delhi stands at a crossroads between emergency policy measures on the ground and experimental science in the sky. Whether this combination can finally clear the capital’s post-festival haze remains to be seen.

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Down to Earth is Science and Environment fortnightly published by the Society for Environmental Communication, New Delhi. We publish news and analysis on issues that deal with sustainable development, which we scan through the eyes of science and environment.