3 min readMay 26, 2026 06:40 AM IST First published on: May 26, 2026 at 06:40 AM ISTIt is now well known that the particulate matter (PM) burden on Delhi’s air — responsible for the city’s chronic pollution crisis — is a toxic mix of multiple pollutants. Addressing it requires a multi-pronged approach that combines systemic overhauls with relatively simple interventions at the local government level. Controlling emissions from the transport, industrial and agricultural sectors involves complex solutions with significant implications for economic activity in the city and its surrounding regions. Dust pollution, in contrast, can be reduced through relatively less economically disruptive measures such as regular road sweeping, water sprinkling, covering construction sites, and maintaining roads and pavements. However, as an investigation by this newspaper shows, the city’s limited dust-control infrastructure, especially its Mechanical Road Sweeping Machines (MRSM), remains severely underutilised. The persistent failure to implement such operationally straightforward measures raises serious questions about administrative intent.In Delhi, dust pollution primarily originates from construction sites, demolition activities, roadside soil and the movement of heavy vehicles. It accounts for nearly 41 per cent of PM10 pollutants and 38 per cent of the finer PM2.5 particles during summer, when dry conditions increase dust levels in the city’s air. Yet, as the investigation reveals, Delhi’s MRSM fleet operates below capacity for much of the year, including during peak-pollution months, and its deployment remains confined to only a few parts of the capital. Coverage across municipal zones is uneven, with better-funded zones receiving more service than others. This skewed usage defeats the purpose of the machines. Dust does not respect administrative boundaries — when one zone is cleaned while another is neglected, particles circulate across the city because of traffic movement and shifting wind patterns.AdvertisementFor far too long, Delhi’s authorities have treated the city’s poor air quality as a seasonal problem, despite a wealth of studies highlighting heavy pollution year-round. Their failure to acknowledge the scale of the crisis prevents the city from deriving the maximum benefit from MRSMs. The fact that the deployment of these machines is concentrated in winter, when smog attracts public attention, shows that the authorities continue to adopt a reactive approach. Delhi needs a coordinated dust-management strategy involving civic bodies, the Public Works Department and pollution-control agencies. Real-time monitoring of MRSM deployment and performance audits could introduce much-needed transparency into the system. Indore’s experience with these machines demonstrates that solutions to dust pollution are neither technologically complex nor financially prohibitive. Unlike geography or crop-residue burning, this is an aspect of pollution over which the Delhi government cannot claim helplessness. Like in its interventions on clean fuel, emission standards and protection of green belts, the Court should nudge Delhi’s authorities.