Amid the gloom caused by the Covid-19 outbreak, there is some good news — the air quality in India has improved in the absence of vehicular emissions and shutting of industrial operations due to the 21-day lockdown in place since March 25.

As most of the country stays home to prevent the spread of coronavirus, the level of nitrogen oxide (NOx), emitted mainly by vehicles, has reduced in the air considerably. NOx causes respiratory problems. 

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, the air quality index (AQI), a parameter that shows how clean or polluted is the air, in as many as 61 cities was “satisfactory” and “good” in 30 cities. The air quality in 12 cities was “moderate”. 

With higher pollution levels and low nutrition levels, India is more vulnerable to COVID-19 than other nations, warn experts. 

People exposed to air pollution for a prolonged period are likely to suffer more due to the virus than others, they say. Cities like Delhi, Noida have observed a drastic reduction in the AQI, but cities like Mumbai, Kohima, Odisha and Chennai have not observed any significant change in the AQI level during the lockdown. 

Gaon Connection spoke to environmentalists and health experts to understand the reasons for latest AQI readings in some cities and their impact on human health amid COVID-19. 

Here is an excerpt of an interview with Pradeep Tripathi, a Mumbai-based environmentalist and founder of Green Yatra, an NGO that works to improve the green cover across Mumbai and Maharashtra. 

After the nationwide 21-day lockdown imposed on March 25, the air quality index reading has observed a decreasing trend in many cities. What do you think are the reasons? 

We do not have many trees to absorb the day-to-day air pollution in cities. In such a situation this lockdown has proved to be a blessing for the environment. Since vehicle, factory, and overall human intervention is minimal, many cities across the country are observing drastic changes in air quality. 

The air quality index (AQI) of Mumbai, as compared to Delhi and Noida, has not decreased much. What could be the reason? 

The reason is that Mumbai is surrounded by ocean. Mumbai has never faced a condition like that of Delhi in terms of air quality. The green cover in Mumbai is around 13%, while Delhi has about 55%. Mumbai usually has low levels of AQI. It doesn’t have many trees as it does not have much land. 

The major contributor to air pollution in Mumbai is toxic vehicular emissions, while Delhi has vehicles, industries, as well as construction work as major air pollution sources. Delhi is surrounded by Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. The pollution from these states also aggravates air pollution in Delhi. The reason why Delhi observed a sudden plunge (in AQI reading) is because it has more green cover than Mumbai. Also, the major contributor to air pollution in Delhi-NCR is dust, which reduces easily. And this is why within the first few days of the lockdown, the AQI there reduced drastically. 

However, pollutants like those from vehicles take time to subside. This is why the AQI didn’t change much in Mumbai, where a major source of air pollution is vehicular emission. Since Mumbai is surrounded by the ocean, air pollution has never been much higher here. Similar is the situation in Kolkata and Chennai, the coastal areas. We (Mumbai) have mangroves, wetlands, and ocean, which act as the major carbon sinks. There is this grass, phytoplankton, found in the ocean that helps purify air as it produces a lot of oxygen. 

Once the lockdown gets over, people will start moving towards cities. Do you think this will affect the environment and air pollution? 

Pollution will shoot up. To overcome losses caused by the lockdown, production could shoot up to double the normal capacity. Pollution could increase exponentially in such a scenario. Migration to cities will increase, that means an increase in vehicular emissions. 

Do you think the government should consider such lockdowns for the environment’s sake? 

The economy is very important to us and the environment has never been a concern. It has always been neglected. People are not observing this lockdown to purify the air around them. They will not support any lockdown intended for just cleaning the air. 

According to a report, one in eight deaths in India occurs due to air pollution. What do you think the ministry of the environment should do about this? 

Many people are dying due to air pollution but since its effects are not visible directly, people don’t bother about it. Since coronavirus has a visible impact, people are worried. They don’t understand that these two are related. 

What is the solution to ensure AQI does not reach an unhealthy level?

People think planting trees is the only solution. Although it is a solution, a tree takes 5-10 years to grow. Hence, it is time-consuming. We need to look at other aspects as well. 

The government of India has announced that by 2030, all vehicles will be electric. This will be a major step. I was in one of the conferences of (Prakash) Javedkar (Union environment minister) saheb, in which he talked about controlling air pollution through green technology. He emphasised on reducing carbon dioxide levels from chimneys of factories. So, for a country like India, sustainable development and green technology are the key solutions. 

We are avoiding green technology because it is expensive, but when air pollution will start affecting our lives directly, this will sound cheap to us. We have observed drastic changes in AQI levels during the lockdown, so if green vehicles were to come into the picture, that will have a huge impact on the environment and on people’s health. 

Excerpt from an interview, with Vikrant Tongad, environment conservationist and founder of Social Action for Forest & Environment

What would you say on the improving air quality index in cities like Delhi? 

As per the national standard, the AQI should be between 0-50. We experience this rarely. We have not observed this good quality in AQI during the last 10 years of my work. We believe this can be reduced to as much as 10-20 during this 21-day lockdown. Air quality in Meghalaya remains between 0-10. Considering the changes in AQI, we predict this can also be achieved in Delhi-NCR during this lockdown. 

In Odisha, there has not been much change in the AQI levels. What could be the reason? 

The climate conditions in these areas are different than those in Delhi. Air quality there has always better than in Delhi. Since it is a coastal area, such a plunge in AQI reading is not possible. The climatic conditions in Odisha is different than other states. Several factors like wind flow could be the reasons. 

The AQI levels in Vadodara has been an almost 33% fall within the first three days of the lockdown. Is there any geographical relevance?

Geographical alignment and climatic conditions play a key role in the air quality of a region. The city (Vadodara) has climate conditions similar to that of Delhi and NCR. There will not be a big difference in the climate of Mumbai and Gujarat, since both are near ocean bodies. Mumbai is much closer to the ocean and, hence, has low AQIs. But Vadodara, being surrounded by a major chunk of land, has air quality like that of Delhi. 

Dr Arvind Kumar Singh is the founder of Lung Care Foundation and former professor of surgery, AIIMS, New Delhi. He said air pollution and Covid-19 are closely related. Excerpts from an interview. 

Is there any relation between air pollution and Covid-19? 

Absolutely. Air pollution and Covid-19 are closely related. The coronavirus is likely to hit people in cities that are polluted the most in terms of air quality. Air pollution weakens the lungs. Besides that, it damages other parts of our body. This directly affects the immune system of a person. In such a situation, in regions with high air pollution, people are more prone to catching infections and viruses. 

Coronavirus affects health directly, while air pollution acts as a slow killer. It first affects the lungs, brain, and then damages other parts of the body. However, this 21-day lockdown is going to have a good impact on the overall health of a person. 

Are the elderly more vulnerable to the disease because they have been more exposed to air pollution? 

We have seen that the elderly have been the most affected by the disease. Besides lung problems, they suffer from diseases like diabetes. Most of them suffer from kidney and heart diseases. If a 24-year-old has unhealthy lungs but has other body parts functioning well, then even if the coronavirus infects him, he will recover. But, if a 70-year-old with lungs already damaged due to air pollution gets infected, his lungs can recover only at a slow rate. This will also increase his chances of death.