‘Declare it national health emergency’: Rahul Gandhi demands Parliament discussion on air pollution

Governments across the country, the chief ministers, the Prime Minister, and the national government need to make sure there is enough money in the Budget to tackle this problem, he added.

Gandhi and the Congress have been vocal on the issue of air pollution and had demanded a discussion on it during the recent Winter Session of Parliament.

As the Winter Session concluded, Congress MP and Congress communication in-charge Jairam Ramesh had said the Congress was ready to discuss air pollution, but the government was “running away” from a discussion on it.

“This wasn’t a Winter Session, it was a pollution session. I was shocked when the government gave a reply in Parliament yesterday (Thursday), stating that there is no relation between pollution and lung problems,” he had said.

Ramesh said Gandhi had repeatedly sought a detailed discussion on the deteriorating air quality across the country, particularly in North India, where pollution levels have remained severe for weeks.

During an Idea Exchange at The Indian Express on January 27, Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav had said that the government was still ready to debate the issue of air pollution, but had criticised the Opposition for disrupting proceedings when the issue was slated for debate on the last day of the Winter Session.

Delhi saw eight days of severe to severe-plus air quality days in 2025 and 157 poor to very poor air quality days, as per government data.

‘Winter is fear’: Rahul Gandhi reads messages

A few days ago, Gandhi had put out a message on social media asking for people’s experience with pollution in our cities. He said he had received thousands of messages. He read a few of them, where people had written about their struggles with pollution.

Gandhi read a message from a few people, including a Neeraj from Ghaziabad, who wrote that he feels he has failed his daughter when he hears her coughing every morning, and his mother struggles as she is a kidney transplant patient. “For us, winter is not a season, it is fear,” said Gandhi, quoting the letter from the Ghaziabad resident.

He also read a letter from a person named Pranav Dua, from Jaipur, who wrote, “I have quit cycling and running. We check the AQI before leaving the house.”

According to Gandhi, a Class 10 student from Pune gave suggestions to control pollution, and said: “India’s air pollution crisis demands immediate practical and science-based solutions. The government must enforce emission norms on industries, construction sites and vehicles, and expand public transport through electric buses. A rapid transition to renewable energy such as solar and wind is essential to reduce reliance on coal-based power plants. Instead of penalising farmers, provide them with alternative waste management facilities, modern machinery and financial incentives… Stop destroying forests.”