Delhi: Nehru Park set to host 150 air purifiers in anti-pollution plan
The Delhi government will install 150 outdoor air purifiers at Nehru Park in a pilot project aimed at creating the city's first 'clean air zone,' environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, outlining a plan that experts called unviable and impractical. An air purifier already installed at the Jangpura fuel station. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)
Sirsa said the devices, upto nine-feet-tall PM 2.5 particulate matter filters, will be spread across the 85-acre park and maintain 'good' air quality even during peak pollution periods.
'This initiative is part of the government's efforts to improve air quality in the city. It will be a first-of-its-kind pilot project in the country to improve air quality at a public park,' Sirsa told HT.
The announcement comes as Delhi has grappled for years with hazardous air pollution levels that peak in the transition to winter. It follows the closure of two expensive smog towers that authorities deemed ineffective, after the then Aam Aadmi Party government touted them as first-of-its-kind solutions to the city's bad air crisis.
In 2023, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee called the Connaught Place smog tower experiment ineffective in improving outdoor air quality.
The new project will be carried out through a corporate social responsibility partnership with private firm Umeandus, which has tested the technology at four locations including Anand Vihar, a Jangpura petrol pump, New Moti Bagh and outside the Taj Ambassador hotel.
Each purifier will cover approximately 600 square metres and requires approval from the New Delhi Municipal Council before installation can begin, Sirsa said. The devices are easy to install and occupy minimal space, according to the minister.
Officials said each machine costs around ₹ 5 lakh and the project will be funded through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Experts questioned the viability of outdoor air purification technology, pointing to the failure of previous initiatives.
'The best example is our two Delhi smog towers at Anand Vihar and Connaught Place. As of now, we have not seen any evidence to suggest how air purifiers outside can clean up air in an effective radius in the city,' said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment.
'It is more important to assess the viability of technology that is already installed, before more investments flow in. The same funds could be used to reduce emissions at source,' she added.
Air purifiers are typically effective in enclosed places where the same air is recirculated – a device out in the open will need to filter a potentially unending supply of bad air, depending on wind conditions.
Nehru Park, known for its lush lawns and trees including gulmohar, neem and ashoka, attracts hundreds of walkers, joggers and yoga enthusiasts daily, particularly during morning and evening hours. The park also hosts regular cultural events.
The initiative forms part of the BJP government's broader air quality strategy, including its manifesto promise to halve Delhi's pollution levels by 2030.
Earlier this month, the government released a Mitigation Action Plan featuring over 1,000 water sprinklers, 140 anti-smog guns, cloud seeding experiments, audits of pollution under control centres every six months, installation of automatic number plate recognition cameras on Delhi's border points for end-of-life vehicles, and 5,000 additional electric buses.
Delhi consistently ranks among the world's most polluted cities, with air quality frequently reaching hazardous levels.
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