Opinion Even Messi can’t distract from Delhi’s AQI mess. Political class must act
As Chief Minister Rekha Gupta stepped out to share the stage with the Argentinian football superstar, chants of 'AQI, AQI' came as a mordant reminder of what is truly at stake. Delhi needs an honest reckoning with the city’s appetite for cars, concrete, and convenience
The political response to the crisis, however, continues to waver between panicked half-measures and partisan deflections. 
Over the last decade, Delhi winters have acquired a ritual as predictable as the turning of the calendar: The air thickens with particulate matter; arguments harden into political whataboutery, ad hoc measures are put in place, and then, as the season turns, things roll on, the issue is relegated. This year, though, that trajectory has seen welcome disruptions — from citizens asserting their right to clean air. On Monday, in the smog-laden evening of what was the third day of “severe” pollution, as Chief Minister Rekha Gupta stepped out to share the stage with the Argentinian football superstar Lionel Messi at the national capital’s Arun Jaitley stadium, chants of “AQI, AQI” came as a reminder of what is truly at stake.
Delhi’s latest descent into “severe” air pollution — the Air Quality Index (AQI) has been well over the range of 400 — has arrived without many of its usual culprits: Smoke from stubble burning or unusual winter chill. Instead, the city has been caught out by a near-total drop in wind speed and a shallow atmospheric layer trapping pollutants closer to the ground, leaving the city’s own emissions — from vehicles, construction and industry — to accumulate unchecked. Between 2015 and November 2025, the average annual AQI in Delhi has been 235, much higher than the WHO-mandated safety levels. The Lancet Countdown 2025 Report pegged the number of pollution deaths at 1.72 million in 2022.
The political response to the crisis, however, continues to waver between panicked half-measures and partisan deflections. Since she came to power, CM Gupta has given assurances of treating pollution control as an “emergency mission”, but meaningful action is yet to take shape. Earlier this month, the government said in Parliament that the WHO’s Air Quality Guidelines are merely advisory, meant to assist countries in establishing their own independent parameters. What Delhi needs is not obfuscation but robust, credible data to guide policy; bold interventions to curb vehicular emissions; serious investment in cleaner public transport; and an honest reckoning with the city’s appetite for cars, concrete and convenience. LoP Rahul Gandhi’s call for a parliamentary debate on the issue is a step in the right direction. Toxic air is everyone’s problem. The solution will need to involve all — and urgently.
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