Clean Air is Everyone's Responsibility: Why Delhi-NCR Needs a Year-Round Citizen Participation Campaign
Rajesh Kumar, Retd Director MoEFCC
Every winter, Delhi-NCR finds itself trapped in a familiar cycle. Air Quality Index (AQI) levels begin to rise, emergency measures are announced, schools face disruptions, construction activities are restricted, and citizens are advised to remain indoors. Governments, municipal bodies, pollution control authorities, and courts respond with urgency. Yet the question remains: Can air pollution be controlled by government action alone? The answer is clearly no.
Air pollution in Delhi-NCR is a collective challenge requiring collective action. While governments regulate industries, vehicles, construction activities, waste management, and fuel usage, millions of citizens influence air quality through daily choices involving transport, waste disposal, energy consumption, and compliance with environmental regulations.
The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has repeatedly emphasized that public participation is an essential component of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). GRAP schedule, which governs pollution-control measures across Delhi-NCR. GRAP includes several actions where citizen cooperation directly determines success, such as avoiding unnecessary vehicle use, preventing open waste burning, using public transport, reducing diesel generator usage, and complying with restrictions during severe pollution episodes.
The framework for targeted Information, Education and Communication (IEC) activities issued by CAQM on 03.03.2026 for NCR States and GNCTD for abatement of air pollution in Delhi-NCR envisages sustained engagement with sector-specific stakeholders and intensified IEC campaigns throughout the year.
The Scale of the Challenge
Air pollution in Delhi is a complex mixture of emissions from transport, industries, construction activities, road dust, waste burning, household fuels, and regional sources. Meteorological conditions during winter—low wind speeds, temperature inversion, and stagnant air—further worsen pollution levels.
Although air quality has shown signs of improvement, the challenge remains formidable. Delhi NCR’s annual average PM2.5 concentration in recent years has remained significantly above both national standards and international health guidelines. Even in 2025, regarded as one of the cleaner years in recent times, pollution levels remained substantially higher than safe limits.
Recognizing the urgency, CAQM has set ambitious targets for 2026, including a 15% improvement in average AQI and significant reductions in PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations. Achieving these goals will require not only administrative enforcement but also unprecedented public cooperation.
India has successfully used Information, Education and Communication (IEC) campaigns in areas such as polio eradication, sanitation, water conservation, road safety, and COVID-19 vaccination. Air pollution deserves a similar social mobilization strategy.
Today, most pollution-control communication is reactive. Citizens are informed when restrictions are imposed. What is missing is a proactive, year-round communication programme that prepares residents well in advance.
Imagine if, every April, newspapers, television channels, social media platforms, Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs), schools, industries, and municipal bodies jointly launched a “Clean Air Calendar” for the upcoming winter season.
Citizens would know
- What restrictions may come into force under different GRAP stages.
- How their travel patterns affect pollution.
- Why vehicle maintenance and Pollution Under Control Certificates matter.
- How open waste burning harms neighbourhood air quality.
- What alternatives exist to diesel generators.
- How construction sites should manage dust.
- What actions families can take during high-pollution episodes.
Such advance awareness would transform compliance from compulsion into participation.
A One-Year Advance Communication Strategy
Delhi-NCR can probably become the first region in India to adopt a 365-Day Clean Air Communication Framework.
- Sara Exports Ltd. – Ghaziabad
- Para Products Pvt. Ltd. – Ghaziabad
- Meditech Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. – Ghaziabad
- Dauxil Products – Jodhpur
Sister Concerns
- Kutch Chemicals India Ltd. – Gujarat
- Panoli Intermediates India Pvt. Ltd. – Gujarat
- Dykes & Dunes Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. – New Delhi
Together, these companies strengthen the Globus ecosystem by contributing specialized expertise and manufacturing capabilities.
Global Presence
Globus serves clients across India and exports products to several international markets, including:
April–June: Awareness Phase
- Publish annual clean-air targets.
- Explain pollution sources and health impacts.
- Train school eco-clubs and RWAs.
- Launch citizen air-quality ambassadors.
July–September: Preparedness Phase
- Disseminate expected GRAP measures.
- Promote public transport and car-pooling campaigns.
- Encourage industries and institutions to prepare contingency plans.
October–January: Action Phase
- Daily AQI advisories.
- Real-time social media updates.
- Hyper-local alerts through WhatsApp groups and RWAs.
- Public reporting of waste burning, dust violations, and polluting activities.
February–March: Review Phase
- Public disclosure of achievements.
- Recognition of high-performing RWAs, schools, markets, and industries.
- Citizen feedback and planning for the next year.
Citizens as Environmental Partners
Research and real-world experience consistently show that reductions in human-generated emissions produce measurable improvements in air quality. The dramatic improvements witnessed during periods of reduced activity, such as the COVID-19 lockdown, demonstrated the extent to which human behaviour influences PM2.5 concentrations.
This does not mean shutting down economic activity. It means adopting smarter behaviour:
- Using public transport whenever possible.
- Avoiding unnecessary vehicle trips.
- Maintaining vehicles regularly.
- Preventing waste burning.
- Supporting clean energy alternatives.
- Following GRAP advisories voluntarily.
- Reporting violations through official channels.
This does not mean shutting down economic activity. It means adopting smarter behaviour:
From Enforcement to Ownership
Delhi-NCR has already established one of the world’s most comprehensive air-quality management frameworks through CAQM, CPCB, concerned SPCBs, DPCC and programmes like statutory Directions, GRAP, pollution monitoring systems, emission regulations, and inter-state coordination mechanisms.
The next frontier is citizen ownership.
Clean air cannot be delivered solely through orders, restrictions, penalties, or emergency responses. It must become a shared civic mission. The battle against air pollution will be won not only in government offices and courtrooms but also in homes, schools, workplaces, and neighbourhoods.
The future of Delhi’s air depends on transforming every citizen from a pollution victim into a pollution warrior.