Significance of PM2.5 Air Quality at the Indian Capital

In New Delhi, the capital city of India, concentrations of regulated air pollutants often exceed the Indian national ambient air quality standards (INAAQS). As the sources of these pollutants differ, it is of utmost priority to understand the most dangerous air pollutant to formulate better control strategies in the city. In this study, regulated air pollutant concentrations in New Delhi during 2011 to 2014 were collected. Compared to other pollutants, PM2.5 concentrations exceeded the INAAQS quite often. While PM2.5 exceeded INAAQS during 85% of the days, NO2, O3, CO and SO2 exceeded only on 37, 14, 11 and 0% of the days, respectively. Using air quality index approach, the most dominant pollutant was identified as PM2.5, for 75 to 90% of the days. However, a seasonal variation in the percentage dominance of PM2.5 was observed. For example, PM2.5 was dominant during 95% of the winter and 68% of monsoon days. In addition to absolute concentrations, pollutants can also be ranked by studying their associated short term mortality impacts. However, such studies are rare in India. For the first time, the short term impact of PM2.5 concentrations on non-disease specific mortality in New Delhi was assessed using Poisson regression models. Results indicated that the excessive risk associated with PM2.5 estimated was 0.57, which was higher than the other regulated pollutants. This indicates a projected 6.2 and 6.5% decrease in mortality by meeting the PM2.5 Indian standards and WHO set limits, respectively.