India, March 29 -- In the shadow of Delhi's toxic air and Mumbai's flooded streets, India's urban centres face an environmental reckoning. As reported by World Air Quality Report, with 11 of the world's 20 most polluted cities located within India, the urban environmental crisis has become a fundamental threat to economic development, public health, and quality of life. As India pursues its vision of progress, there is an urgent need for systemic rather than symptomatic interventions.

The True Scale of Urban Pollution

Cities have gained disproportionate economic significance by generating over 60% of India's GDP while occupying less than 5% of its land area. It is, therefore, not surprising that cities are the sites with maximum human i...