In Delhi, the Air Quality Index (AQI) at 7 PM on Saturday is above 300, in the hazardous category. In Beijing, it’s 29. While the residents of one capital city are breathing clean air, the others are exposed to toxic air, leaving them gasping for cleaner air.

However, just ten years back, the situations in both the cities—capitals of two Asian powerhouses—were similar. While Beijing’s AQI was similar to what Delhi experiences today, the number of fatalities caused by bad air was also comparable.

Just look at the figures: In 2005, China’s annual air pollution deaths reached 2.6 million. The figure for Delhi in 2023 stood at 17,188, accounting for 15 per cent of the total number of deaths. Notably, the number of deaths climbed from 15,786 in 2018 to 17,188 in 2023.

These are no small figu

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