At a farm on the outskirts of Amritsar, Punjab | Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO/PTI

Over the last few years, the Delhi and Punjab governments have been at the receiving end of scathing criticism on the issue of air pollution. But the annual inter-State blame games have only served as a distraction even as residents in the two States continue to breathe polluted air. Now, with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) governing both Delhi and Punjab, collaboration for clean air should be the mantra for both State governments.

While Delhi dominates the discourse on air pollution in India, Punjab is home to nine of the 132 most polluted cities in the country identified by the Central Pollution Control Board. In 2019, Delhi and Punjab together faced economic losses estimated to be approximately ₹18,000 crore due to worsening air pollution. Therefore, by collaborating for clean air, both States can ensure improvements in citizen well-being and labour productivity.

So, how can the two States collaborate?

First, those in charge of the two States must talk. Setting aside their disagreements on the contribution of stubble burning to Delhi’s air pollution, the States should arrive at a common understanding of sources polluting the region. This would result in solutions that are amenable to both governments.

Second, create platforms for knowledge exchange. A common knowledge centre should be set up to facilitate cross-learning on possible solutions to developmental challenges in both States. Such a centre would especially benefit Punjab given the host of measures that the Delhi government has already taken to improve air quality in Delhi. For instance, Delhi has 40 continuous air quality monitoring stations. On the other hand, Punjab has only eight continuous monitoring stations while source assessment studies for eight of its nine non-attainment cities are under way. Information on air quality levels and source assessment studies are critical in developing long-term strategies for pollution mitigation.

Third, collaborate to execute proven solutions. The two States could co-design solutions that would improve air quality. They could jointly institutionalise a task force comprising experts from State-run institutions to pilot these solutions and assess their impact. This would ensure wider acceptance of the proposed solution, which has not been the case in the past. For instance, the PUSA bio-decomposer (developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute), touted as a solution to stubble burning by the Delhi government, has received mixed reviews from farmers. Further, the decomposer only makes sense for early maturing varieties of paddy, as even with the decomposer, stubble would take between 25 to 30 days to decompose. Therefore, it is of little use in high burn districts such as Sangrur, Punjab, where late-maturing paddy varieties are dominant.

Fourth, create a market for diversified crop products. The persistence of stubble burning in Punjab and its contribution to toxic winter pollution in Delhi cannot be denied. Shifting away from the ‘paddy-wheat cycle’ through crop diversification is a sure shot solution to stubble burning. But, the lack of an assured market for agricultural products, other than wheat and paddy, has acted as a deterrent. For years now, the AAP government has toyed with the idea of introducing ‘Aam Aadmi kitchens’ in Delhi. These community kitchens could potentially incorporate crops other than wheat and paddy in meals offered. Scaling up such kitchens in the two States could signal demand and an assured market for diversified crop products.

Finally, both State governments should assert the need for extending inter-State cooperation to other States in the Indo-Gangetic plains in different inter-State forums. One such forum is the Northern Zonal Council which has representation from Chandigarh, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Both Delhi and Punjab must use this platform to highlight the need for coordination with neighbouring States to alleviate the pollution crisis.

AAP has an opportunity to showcase political leadership towards air quality improvement in Delhi and Punjab. However, while collaborative solutions exist, everything cannot be achieved this winter. This year, both State governments should focus on identifying clear metrics that they will use to evaluate their performance in the coming years. With a collaborative plan of action, we can be optimistic about cleaner air in the years to come.

Tanushree Ganguly is Programme Lead at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), an independent not-for-profit policy research institution

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