In a rare demonstration at New Delhi’s iconic India Gate, dozens of protesters were detained by police on Sunday as they demanded urgent measures to combat the city’s severe air pollution crisis. The protest, attended by people of all ages, saw participants holding banners and chanting slogans like ‘Breathing is killing us’ and ‘Our right, clear air.’ Visuals from the scene showed police forcibly removing protesters and bundling them into buses. The city’s air quality index (AQI) on Monday stood at 345, classified as ‘very poor,’ according to the Central Pollution Control Board. The AQI scale ranges from ‘good’ (0–50) to ‘severe’ (401–500).
New Delhi and its surrounding regions face a recurring winter haze caused by cold air trapping construction dust, vehicle emissions, and smoke from crop burning. This toxic mix leads to widespread respiratory illnesses. Despite efforts by authorities, including a failed cloud seeding attempt last month to induce artificial rain, pollution levels remain alarmingly high.
Opposition leaders criticized the police action, emphasizing the constitutional right to peaceful protest. Rahul Gandhi, leader of the Congress party, stated on X, ‘The right to clean air is a basic human right. Why are citizens … peacefully demanding clean air being treated like criminals?’ Meanwhile, Delhi’s Environment Minister, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to tackling pollution, stating, ‘We will continue every possible effort to rid us of pollution.’
The protest highlights growing public frustration over the lack of effective action to address the annual pollution crisis, which has plagued the capital for years.