More than 65 Indian cities but only 17 Chinese cities included in the list of most polluted cities in the world

The result of China’s air pollution reduction programme

New Delhi – Many Indian cities are facing the problem of air pollution. Earlier in the list of ‘World’s Most Polluted Cities’, most cities were from China, but this has changed now. Due to drastic measures taken by China to cut down air pollution, the level of air pollution has reduced across many cities.. In 2017, i.e. 6 years ago, 75 Chinese cities and 17 Indian cities were among the most polluted cities in the world. After 6 years this situation has changed completely. In 2022, out of the 100 most polluted cities in the world, 65 were Indian, whereas only 17 were Chinese.

In 2014, China’s President Xi Jinping acknowledged that ‘air pollution is Beijing’s biggest problem’ and after that, China took many important steps to reduce air pollution.

China prepared a national-level action plan to curb air pollution and earmarked an estimated Rs 22.5 lakh crore for it.

Under this plan, number of vehicles was brought under control in the major cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Stringent pollution regulations were brought in place for heavy industries like iron and steel manufacturing. China also shut down many coal power plants and banned the construction of new ones.

According to the ‘Energy Policy Institute’ at the University of Chicago, ‘China’s efforts have resulted in a 42.3% reduction in air pollution from 2014 to 2021.’

Editorial Perspective

Why can’t India take the same steps taken by China to reduce air pollution?