SFC Perspectives Limiting the threat of environmental pollution through health-focused, systemic transformations
Air pollution affects large parts of rural and urban India, posing a significant health risk and causing over 1.5 million premature deaths annually. Our work aims to make lasting and sustainable improvements to India’s air quality by strengthening the foundations of our approach to air quality management. This involves strengthening regulatory institutions, enabling governance mechanisms for collaboration between state and non-state actors, and implementing forward-looking and ambitious policies.
Presently, we focus on three interconnected issues: enhancing the capacity of environmental regulators (pollution control boards) to address the challenges posed by an urbanising and industrializing nation, establishing a comprehensive air quality management framework and effective local and regional institutions, and integrating health considerations into all stages of air pollution policymaking.
Our publications
This also includes publications by SFC team members in their past capacities.
Synergistic associations of ambient air pollution and heat on daily mortality in India
Jeroen de Bont, Ajit Rajiva et al
Environment International | 2 April 2025
Findings reveal a substantial synergistic interaction between ambient air pollution and temperature in India.
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Thirty and Still Dirty: Why Do Delhi’s Roads Remain So Polluted?
Arunesh Karkun & Nazneen
20 February 2025
This blog looks at some of the historical and emergent challenges behind increasing road dust and vehicular emissions in Delhi, and explores how the city can be redesigned to serve its people and not its vehicles.
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Microplastics: An Overlooked Contributor to India’s Air Pollution
Ishita Srivastava
28 January 2025
Airborne microplastics are increasingly linked to serious health risks, including cancer and reproductive disorders, yet they remain unmonitored and unregulated in India. How can we better study and address this emerging class of pollutants?
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Journal articles
Environmental Governance and Policy
Pollution Regulation in India: Institutional and Legislative Conundrums
Shibani Ghosh
Economic & Political Weekly | 11 January 2025
Recent reports on capacity constraints faced by the state pollution control boards have revealed serious systemic issues—problematic board structure and composition, lack of competence in the boards’ leadership and instability in its tenure, persistently high vacancies, and skewed financial situation. Recent amendments to the three central environmental laws introduce monetary penalties, reduce scope for criminal prosecution, and make key changes to the regulatory framework. It remains to be seen if these amendments, aimed at facilitating ease of doing business, will succeed in reducing pollution as several systemic issues remain unaddressed. The paper is part of the special issue ‘Review of Environment and Development’, edited by Sharachchandra Lele and Geetanjoy Sahu.
Opinions
Environmental Governance and Policy
Managing air quality: Answer is in airsheds
Shibani Ghosh and Bhargav Krishna
Hindustan Times | 28 October 2024
Four key issues to consider for effectively implementing an airshed-level approach to air quality management: development of robust knowledge systems; appropriate institutional structures; clear powers and functions of the airshed authority; and accountability mechanisms.
Opinions
Environmental Governance and Policy
Explained: What Is PM 2.5 And How Will It Affect Our Health?
Nazneen
ETV Bharat | 20 August 2024
Explainer on PM 2.5, how the particles are formed, their health impacts, and methods for controlling PM 2.5 emissions.
Books and book chapters
Environmental Governance and Policy
Air Quality Regulation
Shibani Ghosh
Oxford University Press | 23 July 2024
This chapter in ‘The Oxford Handbook of Environmental and Natural Resources Law in India’ unpacks the key components of air quality regulation in India. It provides an overview of the regulatory and institutional framework that governs some of the major sources of air pollution in the country, focusing primarily on national laws and policies.
Journal articles
Environmental Governance and Policy
Ambient air pollution and daily mortality in ten cities of India: a causal modelling study
Jeroen de Bont, Bhargav Krishna et al.
The Lancet Planetary Health | 4 July 2024
Even levels of air pollution below current Indian air quality standards lead to increased daily mortality rates in India. It finds that across 10 cities in the country (Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Shimla and Varanasi), ~33,000 deaths per year can be attributed to air pollution levels that are above the WHO guidelines. Significant number of deaths were observed even in cities not considered to have high air pollution, such as Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Chennai.
Opinions
Adaptation and Resilience
Environmental Governance and Policy
Unified action needed to tackle extreme heat and air pollution
Annanya Mahajan and Tamanna Dalal
Mongabay | 25 June 2024
The combined impact of air pollution and heatwaves can be far more severe than individual impacts, as various reactions between heat and gases in the air can affect cardiovascular, respiratory and immune systems. Adopting unified protective health measures against both issues is crucial.
Books and book chapters
Adaptation and Resilience
Environmental Governance and Policy
Synergistic Impact of Air Pollution and Heat on Health and Economy in India
Abinaya Sekar, Rajat Sharma and Annanya Mahajan
Springer | 1 May 2024
The chapter, published in the book ‘The Climate-Health-Sustainability Nexus: Understanding the Interconnected Impact on Populations and the Environment’ (Springer), examines the combined influence of heat and air pollution their implications for global health and the economy.
Reports
Environmental Governance and Policy
Sustainable Solutions to Crop Residue Burning and Air Pollution Cycle in India and Pakistan
Bhargav Krishna, Babar Shahbaz and Annanya Mahajan
Council for Strategic and Defense Research | 22 April 2024
The chapter in the report ‘The Air We Share: Towards Reduced Transboundary Air Pollution across India and Pakistan’ looks at crop residue burning in India and Pakistan, presenting several sustainable solutions – shifting focus away from paddy and wheat towards other crops, coordinating across multiple stakeholders, etc.
SFC Perspectives
Adaptation and Resilience
Climate Policy
Energy Transitions
Environmental Governance and Policy
SFC Perspectives on Adaptation and Resilience, Climate Policy, Energy Transitions, and Environmental Governance and Policy
SFC
SFC | 19 March 2024
SFC Perspectives are intended to stimulate discussion by providing an overview of key issues and avenues for action to inform India’s sustainable development trajectory.
