Timeline of pollution in Delhi

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This is a timeline of pollution in Delhi, which is ranked the highest in the world.[1] Delhi suffers severe levels of air pollution, most of which comes from diesel-burning trucks and buses.[2]

Big picture

Time period Development summary
1980s The issue of air and water pollution in Delhi enters the Supreme Court's agenda in the late decade, and periodic statements and orders are issued from the bench.[3]
1990s Delhi reaches among the world's worst urban level of air quality. Air pollution's heavy impacts on human health, including infant mortality and asthma, leads to sustained efforts for improvement by Indian civil society.[4] Several small and medium-size industries are relocated from Delhi as a measure to control pollution.[5]
2000s Till mid-decade, busy Central and South Delhi areas are high air pollution zones. From then on, dirty air would spread to even cleaner residential areas.[6]
2010s Emergency plans to tackle the city’s annual crisis are reported to have failed in the last years.[7] Delhi’s pollution levels reach high enough to affect the respiratory and cardiac systems of even healthy people. [7] The city ranks among the most polluted in the world.

Full timeline

Year Pollution type Type of event Details
1947 Air pollution India becomes an independent state. At the time, fog in Delhi is rather rare.[8]
1950–1951 (December–February) Air pollution Only one foggy day is reported in the winter months in the city.[8]
1955 Water pollution Crisis Sewage and industrial wastes from the Najafgarh drain cause a famous jaundice episode in Delhi. The Najafgarh drain comes to be known as "sorrow of Delhi"[9]
1974 Water pollution Policy The Central Pollution Control Board is set up under the Water Act.[10]
1982 General Policy Delhi passes its first Industrial Policy.[10]
1985 Air pollution Policy The Supreme Court of India states verdict to deal with the chronic problem of vehicular pollution in Delhi, one of the earliest stand taken by judiciary.[10]
1987 Air pollution Study A survey estimates that 1172 tonnes of suspended particulate matter, hydrocarbons, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and other poisonous gases are spewed into the air in Delhi by industrial units, the various modes of transport and the power sector.[11]
1990 – 2001 General Policy A Master Plan of Delhi allows for "light" industry to be set up in residential areas. This creates a leeway for many industries which are not in the hazardous category (H) to start in the areas vacated by the "H" category industries without the necessity for any permission from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee.[12]
1993 – 2000 Light pollution Study Author Pavan Kumar says New Delhi, along with Telangana, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh experienced increase in “very high light pollution intensity” in the period.[13]
1994 Water pollution Policy India’s Supreme Court takes suo motu notice of a newspaper report on pollution of the Yamuna River in Delhi, marking a turning point after years of limited action. The court formally intervenes by bringing the Central Pollution Control Board and the Delhi government into the case, placing air and water pollution firmly on its agenda and initiating a series of judicial orders aimed at regulating and reducing industrial pollution in the capital.[3]
1995 Air pollution Delhi’s air pollution reaches a critical peak, with suspended particulate matter rising to about 409 µg/m³. This reflects the rapid deterioration of air quality during the early 1990s, driven by accelerated urbanisation and a sharp increase in vehicular traffic, especially diesel-powered vehicles. The extreme particulate levels contribute to worsening winter fog and smog conditions and would later prompt judicial intervention, laying the groundwork for Supreme Court–mandated pollution control measures in the following years.[8]
1995 General Policy The Supreme Court of India asks the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to categorize all industrial units in the city according to pollution hazard they pose.[14]
1995 Air pollution Policy Delhi government introduces catalytic converter in passenger cars as vehicle control measure policy to curb air pollution in the city.[10]
1996 Air pollution 46 foggy days are reported in the winter months in Delhi.[8]
1996 (February) Water pollution Policy The Supreme Court of India orders the Delhi state government to construct common effluent treatment plants, which the industries are required to pay for, to reduce water pollution.[14]
1996 (April) General Policy The Supreme Court of India orders the relocation of factories away from residential areas.[14]
1997 Air pollution Study The annual suspended particulate matter average concentration in Delhi is 339.3 microgrammes per cubic meter.[11]
1998 Air pollution Policy The Supreme Court of India orders a major transformation of Delhi's transportation system, in response to a public interest petition on air pollution.[14]
1998 Air pollution Policy Delhi government introduces unleaded petrol as vehicle control measure policy to curb air pollution in the city.[10]
1998 Biomedical waste Policy India enacts the Biomedical Waste Rules to regulate the storage, treatment, and disposal of biomedical waste in ways that protect public health and the environment. The rules apply to all biomedical waste generators, including hospitals, laboratories, and veterinary institutions. They establish approved treatment methods such as incineration and autoclaving, mandate color-coded waste segregation, prohibit storing untreated waste beyond 48 hours, and require disposal at authorized landfill or treatment sites.[12]
2000 Air pollution Policy Delhi government introduces reduction of benzene content in fuels and reduction of sulfur content in diesel as vehicle control measure policy to curb air pollution in the city.[10]
2003 General Policy After Supreme Court order on hazardous waste, stringent actions are prompted by various State Pollution Control Board in Delhi.[12]
2003 Air pollution Delhi wins the United States Department of Energy's first 'Clean Cities International Partner of the Year' award for its "bold efforts to curb air pollution and support alternative fuel initiatives".[15]
2007 Air pollution Study Study finds that the conversion of buses from diesel to CNG in Delhi helped reduce particulates, carbon monoxide, and sulfur oxide, while lowering the sulphur content of fuels cut both sulfur dioxide and – due to SO2 converting to sulphates, fine particles (PM10). Another study only identified lower CO as a result of the change to compressed natural gas in Delhi.[4]
2009 Water pollution, soil contamination Policy Delhi allows the use of only virgin plastic.[12]
2011 Electronic waste Policy India’s Ministry of Environment and Forests enact the E-waste Rules, establishing a formal regulatory framework for electronic waste management. The rules assign clear responsibilities to producers, consumers, collection centers, dismantlers, and recyclers. Producers are required to collect and finance environmentally sound e-waste management under extended producer responsibility, while restricting hazardous substances in new equipment. Consumers must return e-waste only to authorized entities, and storage beyond six months is prohibited.[12]
2011 (September) Air pollution Study The World Health Organization releases data about urban air. This reveals that Delhi has crossed the maximum PM10 limit by almost 10-times at 198 μg/m3 (micrograms per cubic meter). Emission from vehicle and industrial activities are found to be linked with outdoor as well as indoor air pollution in Delhi.[10]
2012 Water pollution, soil contamination Policy Delhi completely bans all plastic.[12]
2013 Air pollution Delhi experiences a dramatic rise in foggy days, reaching 74 between December and February, compared with just one in 1951. This increase reflects long-term deterioration in air quality driven by rapid urbanisation and heavy vehicular traffic since the early 1990s, especially diesel vehicles. Although Supreme Court-mandated shifts to CNG in the late 1990s temporarily had reduced particulate matter levels, pollution remains severe by 2013, manifesting visibly through persistent winter fog and smog.[8]
2013 (January) Air pollution, water pollution, soil contamination Policy The Delhi High Court orders civic authorities to relocate a biomedical waste incinerator from a residential area to outside the city, citing CPCB guidelines that classify incinerators as hazardous to public health. The court references the Master Plan of Delhi 2021, which bans such industries in residential zones. This decision reinforces judicial enforcement of biomedical waste regulations.[12]
2013 (April) Air pollution Study Research paper by The Centre for Development Economics at Delhi School of Economics indicates that Delhi Metro helps reduce vehicular air pollution.[16]
2014 (May) General Study The World Health Organization announces New Delhi as the most polluted city in the world.[17]
2014 (December) Air pollution Study The Centre for Science and Environment classifies the air in Delhi as “severely polluted” for over 65 per cent days.[18]
2015 (December) Air pollution Study Study shows that Delhi loses 80 lives to air pollution every day, or approximately 10,000 to 30,000 annual deaths in the city.[18][19]
2015 (End of the year) Air pollution Policy Severe air pollution in Delhi National Capital Region leads to a number of Supreme Court rulings, one banning the sale of diesel cars in the area with engine displacements greater than 2.0 L from January 1 to 1 April 2016.[20]
2016 (November) Air pollution Crisis Air pollution in Delhi reaches 16 times above safe levels, and the Delhi government declares an emergency.[7][21]
2017 (November) Air pollution Crisis A public health emergency is declared by the Indian Medical Association in Delhi as air quality index breached 999, likened to smoking 50 cigarettes a day. Air pollution raises to over 710 micrograms per cubic meter, more than 11 times the World Health Organisation’s safe limit.[22][23][24][25]
2017 (November 17) Air pollution Policy The government of Delhi launches the odd-even rule in an attempt to reduce pollution in the nation's capital. It is based on the Odd-Even rationing method: This means that cars running with number plates ending in Odd digits could only be driven on certain days of the week, while the Even digit cars could be driven on the remaining days of the week.[26]
2017 (November 25) Air pollution Policy The Supreme Court of India bans the sale of firecrackers in Delhi to alleviate pollution.[27]
2017 (December) Air pollution Crisis During a test match between Sri Lankan and Indian cricket teams in New Delhi, Sri Lanka players begin to feel breathing problems and several players vomit both in the rest rooms and in the field and have to use face masks until the end of the match.[28]
2018 – 2019 (November 1 2018 – January 6 2019) Air pollution Policy According to report, toxic levels of air pollution monitored over Delhi almost every week during the period shows that the government’s emergency plans to tackle the city’s annual crisis have failed.[7]
2019 (March) Air pollution Study Study published in journal Nature Sustainability shows that high levels of air pollution in New Delhi during the fall and winter months are largely the result of post-harvest burning of crop residue. Pollution levels from crop burning are so high they rival fossil fuel emissions during peak summer months. The findings contradict the widespread notion that the emission flux between cities and the countryside is mainly one-way, and that the main source of pollution in a megacity is expected to be traffic.[29]
2024 (November) Air pollution Crisis Delhi orders the closure of all primary schools as hazardous smog worsen, shifting classes online indefinitely. Air pollution levels reach more than 50 times World Health Organization safety limits, with extremely high PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations affecting Delhi and nearby cities. The seasonal smog is driven by weather conditions, vehicle emissions, dust, and crop burning. Authorities impose mitigation measures, but critics say they remain ineffective.[30]

Visual data

The comparative chart below shows Google Trends data for pollution in Delhi (Search term), Delhi air quality (Search term) and air pollution in India (Search term), from January 2004 to April 2021, when the screenshot was taken. Interest is also ranked by country and displayed on world map.[31]

Google Ngram Viewer

The comparative chart below shows Google Ngram Viewer data for Pollution in Delhi and pollution in Beijing, from 1945 to 2019.[32]

Wikipedia Views

The chart below shows pageviews of the English Wikipedia article Pollution in Delhi, from November 2017 to March 2021.[33]


Meta information on the timeline

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See also

References

  1. ↑ "India takes steps to curb air pollution". who.int. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  2. ↑ "Where Is the Worst Air in the World?". slate.com. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Bauer, Joanne R. Forging Environmentalism: Justice, Livelihood, and Contested Environments: Justice, Livelihood, and Contested Environments.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Delhi air quality". panda.org. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  5. ↑ "Delhi lacks long-term plan to check industrial pollution". hindustantimes.com. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  6. ↑ Chauhan, Chetan. "Delhi cold brings pollution, illness". hindustantimes.com. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Despite government's emergency pollution plan, Delhi once again breathed deadly air through winter". scroll.in. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Balachandran, Manu; Thomas, Maria. "Delhi's air is so toxic that schools are closing, expats are fleeing, and the visiting UK PM could lose hours from her life". qz.com. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
  9. ↑ Agarwal, S. K. Water Pollution.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 "Pollution in Delhi : A Chronic Problem". jagranjosh.com. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Agarwal, S. K. Air Pollution.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 Raju, K.V.; Ravindra, A.; Manasi, S.; Smitha, K.C.; Srinivas, Ravindra. Urban Environmental Governance in India: Browsing Bengaluru.
  13. ↑ "Not just air, light pollution too is on the rise in India". scroll.in. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Bauer, Joanne R. Forging Environmentalism: Justice, Livelihood, and Contested Environments.
  15. ↑ "Express India". Cities.expressindia.com. Archived from the original on 31 December 2010. Retrieved 11 March 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  16. ↑ "Delhi Metro helps reduce vehicular air pollution, indicates research". indiatoday.in. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  17. ↑ Madhok, Madhok (16 October 2014). "Here is why India has no clue how bad its air pollution problem is". Quartz India. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Delhi loses 80 lives to air pollution every day, says study". downtoearth.org.in. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  19. ↑ "Air pollution kills 30,000 in Delhi every year". hindustantimes.com. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  20. ↑ Naseem, Mohammad; Naseem, Saman. Energy Law in India.
  21. ↑ "Indian government declares Delhi air pollution an emergency". theguardian.com. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  22. ↑ "Toxic Air Is Now A Year-Round Problem For Delhi". bloombergquint.com. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  23. ↑ "Delhi doctors declare pollution emergency as smog chokes city". theguardian.com. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  24. ↑ "Delhi residents panic as 'deadly smog' returns". bbc.com. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  25. ↑ "Delhi's air pollution is triggering a health crisis". bbc.com. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  26. ↑ "Odd-Even Rule: 5 Things You Need to Know - NDTV CarAndBike". CarAndBike. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  27. ↑ "Supreme Court bans sale of firecrackers in Delhi, NCR". Times of India. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  28. ↑ Safi, Michael (2017-12-03). "Pollution stops play at Delhi Test match as bowlers struggle to breathe". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  29. ↑ "Burning Crops Are a Top Source of Air Pollution in India, Study Finds". e360.yale.edu. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
  30. ↑ Phillips, Aleks (14 November 2024). "Delhi shuts all primary schools as hazardous smog worsens". BBC News. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  31. ↑ "pollution in Delhi, Delhi air quality and air pollution in India". Google Trends. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  32. ↑ "Pollution in Delhi and pollution in Beijing". books.google.com. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  33. ↑ "Pollution in Delhi". wikipediaviews.org. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
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