Mumbai goes to polls but will it fix city’s toxic air

These promises come alongside assurances on long pending civic issues such as potholed roads, waterlogging and uneven water supply.

What parties are promising

A key highlight of the 16-page manifesto released by the BJP-Shiv Sena led Mahayuti alliance on Sunday is a comprehensive environmental plan aimed at keeping Mumbai’s air quality index (AQI) under control. The alliance has proposed an allocation of Rs 17,000 crore towards environmental sustainability.

The BJP-Shiv Sena join manifesto promises to double the number of air quality monitoring stations in Mumbai, which currently stands at 28, and to install real time AQI display boards at major traffic junctions across the city. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarty)

The manifesto also promises to double the number of air quality monitoring stations in Mumbai, which currently stands at 28, and to install real time AQI display boards at major traffic junctions across the city.

Similarly, the joint manifesto of the MNS, Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) pledges to significantly reduce emission levels if voted to power.

“We will urgently reduce the pollution levels that have increased in the past three years and will strictly implement an environmental action plan. In addition to this a Mumbai Childcare environment plan will be implemented and we will not allow destruction of the Aarey forest, Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) and Mangroves in Mumbai,” the manifesto states.

The MVA manifesto, meanwhile, promises a ‘Green Mumbai 2030’ plan, which includes real time AQI monitoring and stricter controls on construction activities across the city.

Candidates push green agendas

Candidates contesting the civic polls have also highlighted environmental issues in their individual campaigns.

BJP’s Harshita Narwekar, contesting from Ward 227 in south Mumbai’s Cuffe Parade area, said one of her key priorities would be ensuring that development goes hand in hand with climate resilience.

The hazy city-scape of Mumbai. The joint manifesto of the MNS, Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) pledges to significantly reduce emission levels if voted to power. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarty)

“With air pollution woes grappling Mumbai for a while one of the key issues that I want to address is to amplify the green cover of my area to ensure development and sustainability goes hand in hand,” Narwekar said. She is contesting the civic elections for the second consecutive term.

Congress candidate Haider Ali Shaikh, contesting from Ward 34 in Malad, an area that has consistently recorded poor AQI levels, said maintaining air quality within safe limits would be his primary focus.

“At present Mumbai is witnessing an infrastructure churn which includes construction work happening across the city. Therefore, my key objective would be to ensure that all the construction sites in my area adhere to norms and don’t contribute to local level pollution. My other objective would also be to keep a check with local authorities to make sure activities like garbage burning are not being carried out,” Shaikh told The Indian Express.

Experts flag gaps in promises

However, environmental experts have criticised political parties for making broad commitments without specifying timelines or concrete measures.

Bhagwan Kesbhat, founder of NGO Waatavaran, said while parties were speaking about clean air, there was little clarity on strengthening public transport.

A view of the Worli Coastal Road. Bhagwan Kesbhat, founder of NGO Waatavaran, said while parties were speaking about clean air, there was little clarity on strengthening public transport. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarty)

“Vehicular emission has been identified to be one of the key contributing factors behind air pollution in Mumbai. Yet, nobody is talking about augmenting the fleet of BEST buses. There is no clarity on whether the number of buses will increase or not because at present the fleet size is shrinking and unless the number of buses aren’t increased, people will continue to depend on private vehicles which in turn will result in increased emission levels,” Kesbhat told Express.

He also flagged the absence of commitments to make Mumbai landfill free.

“Besides this, there are also no promises made on making Mumbai landfill free. The untreated legacy waste piled up in landfill sites like Deonar leads to methane generation that contributes to air pollution. Yet nobody is talking about challenging these issues and bringing an end to them,” Kesbhat said.

Mumbai’s declining air quality

Since 2022, Mumbai has experienced worsening air quality, particularly between October and mid February, a trend once considered rare for an island city. Despite its geographical advantage of being surrounded by the Arabian Sea and Thane Creek, the city has recorded a steady rise in poor AQI days over the past four years.

Between November 2022 and January 2023, Mumbai recorded poor or very poor AQI on 66 of 92 days. Similar trends were observed in subsequent years, with only marginal improvement during periods of unseasonal rainfall.

Experts attribute the deterioration to both natural and man made factors, exacerbated by climate change.

“Due to the global climate change the process of air reversal has become very very slow and Mumbai’s proximity to the western coast also makes it vulnerable to the particles that are blown towards the mainland from the Thar desert and as well as the humid air coming towards the far eastern part of the globe from the middle east. These factors have made Mumbai vulnerable to air pollution as a result of which the city’s AQI continues to be on the downside post monsoon every year,” said Dr Gufran Beig, atmospheric scientist and chair professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, IISc.

Vulnerable pockets

Data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) shows several Mumbai neighbourhoods recording poor to very poor AQI levels post monsoon, including Mazgaon, Deonar and Malad. Officials from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) and the BMC have attributed the decline to localised factors such as vehicular emissions and construction dust.

Experts attribute the deterioration to both natural and man made factors, exacerbated by climate change. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarthy)

“The emission load of Deonar is different from that of Malad. For example, in Deonar the emission load is coming from refineries and thermal stations and with wind direction changing that situation is also changing from time to time. Again in Malad and Kandivali the AQI is getting bad due to construction projects and the mobilising of vehicles. These factors have impacted the local air quality standards in these areas,” Kesbhat said.

Can representatives make a difference?

Residents say the absence of elected corporators over the past few years has weakened accountability and delayed action.

“In the last four years we have seen infrastructure projects getting priority over environmental issues. It was mainly because the elected corporators were not in place and there was a lack of understanding about the on ground situation that was bothering citizens,” said Shakti Tripathi, a Mulund resident.

“If the local representatives were there, we could have complained to him or her directly. We have lodged complaints to the local ward offices as well, but all went unheard,” she added.

Dr Beig said it was encouraging that political parties were now acknowledging the crisis.

“Mumbai is still in a much better state and now that political dispensation has taken note and if they seriously act on it there is a huge chance that things will get really really better in days to come,” he said.

A senior state government official also stated that political focus could lead to greater resource allocation.

“Usually, everything comes down to the budget. Now that these political parties are talking about air pollution mitigation plans, they should also work on getting state of art infrastructure like sprinkling vehicles and strengthening the AQI monitoring network in the city. Besides this the waste management infrastructure also needs to be scaled up because the issue of pollution and mismanagement of waste is very much interdependent,” the official said.