Why Is The Weather In Gurgaon So Toxic?
The city which is sometimes called India’s Singapore (the millennium city of India) is one of the top rich cities in India- Gurgaon (officially known as Gurugram). The city containing more than 40 shopping malls, luxury apartments, massive skyscrapers, a huge golf course and 5-star hotels, is India’s 2nd biggest technology hub. In 2016, more than 500 companies including Google, Microsoft, and Dell had offices in this well-furnished city. More than 1500 start-up companies were started here. Top companies like Zomato, Mobikwik, Rivigo, Uber, and Facebook have their offices in Gurgaon. 10000-15000 startup jobs are created here every year.
But, there is also a huge dark side to this IT-Hub city. There are lots of issues which the city has to face every day. Nowadays, Architecture students are studying Gurgaon as a case study-Gurgaon is a failure as a local city. Let’s understand actually why is the weather in Gurgaon so toxic.
Let’s learn the actual reality of the city
The Major problems in this rich city are –
- Transport
- Water
- Electricity
- Sewage & Waste
- Pollution
1. Transport
Transport connectivity is one of the major issues. According to the Master Plan 2031, 24-meter approach roads to project sites are to be constructed by the developers/landowners. In many cases, the roads have not yet been built. Dwarka Expressway costing 9000 Cr. was planned in 2006 for connecting Gurgaon and Dwarka, but this plan is running behind by a decade. The roads that currently exist in Gurgaon are not maintained properly. None of the agencies – MCG, HUDA, or DTP- responds to complaints about a broken road.
Each of them states since the road is private, they cannot take responsibility to repair. The traffic signs, street lights, zebra crossings, footpaths and cycle tracks are not built properly on the roads. In the first 8 months of the year 2022, these roads have witnessed 1 death each day on average. From 2015-18, more than 1208 people died in road mishaps in this city.
During monsoons, the scenario becomes worse. In September 2022, it rained endlessly for four days and this tech city witnessed deadly potholes on many roads. According to the residents, water lodging led to many accidents- about 20 travellers fell into these pits. Between September 22 and September 24, police received more than 70 calls complaining about the potholes in the roads leading to many accidents. Due to these potholes, sometimes the entire Bus service has to stop. As a result, people have to depend on cars and cabs. In Mumbai, there are more than 350 Bus services available, but in Gurgaon, it is about 37 only.
2. Water
Water which is a basic need of human life is not properly available in Gurgaon. In 2014, 1/3rd of the residents in Gurgaon did not have piped water and wherever it was, the water supply was not enough. According to BBC, due to the shortage, 70% of the residents have to depend on groundwater and so it is declining rapidly. The used water is not getting replenished by rainwater.
In Faridabad, the water extraction is at 75%, in Mewat, it is at 85%, whereas their neighbourhood city Gurgaon is at 308% water extraction. However, many developers provide tankers to residents’ homes, but the cost is very high. One tanker costs about ₹1600.
3. Electricity
Mainly 2 states owned plants which provide electricity to Gurgoan. One is in Yamunanagar and the other is in Hisar, but the massive amount of produced electricity is utilized by the industries, with very little left for the residents. According to the report, 45% of the electricity is consumed by industries and 32% by commercial parks, and only 23% is left for the use of the residents.
4. Sewage & Waste
According to the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the city will soon become a city “drown in its own excreta” because 2/3rd of its area is not connected to the sewer line. That’s why disposing of waste materials is a huge problem for residents and industries. Most of the filth has to be disposed of in rivers and land. It becomes a sanitation issue for the people living in hamlets. In 2021, every day more than 500 million litres of sewage is generated by Gurgaon, whereas the sewage treatment capacity of this city is 250 million litres. The sewage treatment pumps also don’t work properly. As a result, every day 80 million litres of untreated sewage flows directly into the drains.
Along with the problem of disposing of sewage, the waste materials also doubled in the last ten years. Gurgaon’s Bandhwari Landfill has turned into a hill, which is taller than 40 meters. About 2000 tons of waste everyday dumped here. Since the waste is not segregated, so the soil and underground water also gets polluted.
A campaign has been started with the slogan “Remove Highly Toxic Bandhwari Landfill from Aravallis.” A research supports activists’ assertions that toxins from the dump are contaminating areas outside of Bandhwari village, where the groundwater was deemed unsafe for drinking by the Central Pollution Control Board in 2017.
5. Pollution
This is the most awaited part of our topic. Do you know Gurgaon is world famous for being called a “Gas Chamber”? Yes, in 2018, Gurgaon was declared the world’s most polluted city by IQAir Air Visual and Greenpeace.
The situation is so bad that for the past 10 years, the residents of Gurgaon are breathing polluted air. Its pollution level is two times the annual safe limit of PM 2.5. One of the main reasons behind it is the massive vehicle emission which is generated mostly by private vehicles. It is known that almost 1/3rd of the residents in Gurgaon own a car. About 50,000 new cars land on the road every year. All of them contribute to pollution. Also, diesel consumption due to the rapid construction in Gurgaon leads to a lot of pollution.
Pollution due to Construction
Gurgaon has the highest construction activity at any given hour. If you ask any resident, you will know construction in Gurgaon is a never-ending phenomenon. Whatever it may be—highways, infrastructure improvements, foot overbridges, the creation of new residential neighbourhoods or housing developments, or rife illegal buildings in every lane and street—it has become a necessary component of our life. We have been turning a blind eye to it for years, thinking it is the ultimate basis for turning our cities into utopian fantasies, but it is actually one of the biggest threats to our quality of life, posing irreversible ecological, infrastructural, environmental, and other catastrophes.
The largest dust bowl in the NCR was created by construction in Gurgaon. It is recognised as the primary source of smog and air pollution. Due to the rapid construction, there is no vegetation left. Only 3% area is covered by greens, which is not enough to reduce the huge air pollution. However, Deputy Commissioner Nishant Yadav said, “The NCR air is toxic; we are banning all polluting activities. Construction and demolition activities are banned till further orders. Specific infrastructure projects and projects of national importance allowed by the CAQM will, however, be exempted.“
Today, the air quality in the city is still very poor and the pollution levels are still high. The primary sources of air pollution in the city – vehicular emissions, construction activities, burning of biomass, industrial activities and dust are to be reduced.
Conclusion
The government has taken some steps to reduce air pollution such as reducing the number of vehicles on the road and introducing electric vehicles, improving public transport, reducing industrial pollution and implementing dust control measures. They are trying as much as possible to save the weather in Gurgaon being so toxic. However, much more needs to be done to improve the air quality in Gurgaon. Thanks for reading! Join our Telegram Channel for the latest updates.
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