By Rakesh Agrawal
Opening the minuscule 15-day winter session of Parliament, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, smiling, “invited” fellow lawmakers and reporters to “Mausam ka maza lo” (“Enjoy the weather”). The remark cheekily highlighted a pleasant anomaly — a rare moment when parliamentarians and journalists could step outside without heavy woolens or masks.
Yet the contrast could not be starker. The newly built Parliament complex, the Prime Minister’s Office, the prime minister’s and ministers’ residences, and foreign embassies and high commissions are all equipped with expensive air purifiers, allowing their occupants to breathe clean air. So too are the ultra-rich, the rich, and sections of the upper and upper-middle classes — roughly 20% of the population — living across about 1.32 million households.
The rest of the megacity’s estimated 22.3 million residents, spread across roughly 6.6 million households, remain condemned to live amid dangerously polluted air. On Dec. 4, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) hit 373, classified as “severe,” before plunging further to 514 — a level deemed “hazardous.”
Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s chief minister, famously described the city as a “gas chamber” in November 2017 during a severe smog crisis, when the Air Quality Index (AQI) averaged around 400 — a hazardous level. Conditions have worsened since then under the current “double-engine sarkar,” with both the central and Delhi governments ruled by the same political party.
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A study by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago found that Delhi residents lose an estimated 7 to 10 years of life expectancy due to air pollution — translating to roughly 195 minutes (about three hours and 15 minutes) of life lost every day. The findings are based on real-time data from air-quality monitoring stations across the city, with PM2.5 and other fine particulates identified as the primary pollutants driving hazardous conditions.
Data from the People Research on India’s Consumer Economy (PRICE) 2022 report, updated for 2020–21 trends, along with NITI Aayog’s Multidimensional Poverty Index (2019–21, with 2025 extrapolations), underscore Delhi’s stark economic stratification.
Only about 110,000 households (0.5%) are considered ultra-rich, earning more than $240,000 annually. An estimated 1.1 to 1.6 million households (5–7%) fall into the affluent category, with annual incomes between $36,000 and $240,000. The upper-middle class — roughly 15–20% of households — earns about $18,000 to $24,000 a year. The remainder of the city’s population consists of middle-income, lower-income, poor, destitute, and homeless residents, who are the most exposed to the capital’s worsening air pollution.
In fact, Delhi is a predominantly middle-class city, with households earning broadly between ₹5–30 lakh annually (about $6,000–$36,000) comprising roughly 67%, or more than 3 million households—far above India’s national average of 31%.
Inequality, however, remains stark in this highly stratified metropolis. The top 1% now control an estimated 40% of the city’s wealth, up from about 12.5% in 1980.
This raises a million-dollar question: how many residents can actually afford to breathe purified air and “enjoy the weather”? According to market estimates, India’s air purifier market is valued at around ₹904 crore in 2025 (approximately $109 million), with the Delhi-NCR region accounting for 70–72% of total sales—or roughly 500,000 to 700,000 units—driven largely by the capital’s severe air pollution. The average air purifier costs between ₹8,000 and ₹15,000 (about $95–$180) per unit.
For the vast majority of Delhi’s residents, such expenses remain out of reach. Yet many institutions in the capital are equipped with air purifiers, allowing those inside to quite literally enjoy the weather—even as millions outside continue to breathe hazardous air.
Indian parliament
The Indian Parliament has air purifiers installed. According to RTI data revealed in 2025, the government spent ₹648,000 (about $7,800) on 22 high-end air purifiers for the Parliament campus, primarily installed in 2016 to combat Delhi’s worsening air pollution. The units were purchased for the benefit of parliamentarians, ministers, and bureaucrats working on the premises.
Earlier reports from 2018 also confirmed that 25 air purifiers were installed in the prime minister’s offices within Parliament House, at a cost of about $11,000.
Prime Minister’s Office (PMO)
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is equipped with air purifiers. Government records show that 25 units were installed in the PMO’s parliamentary offices as part of a broader 2014–2017 procurement of 140 air purifiers across central government agencies, at a total cost of ₹3.6 million (about $55,000).
More recent reports in 2025 highlight their continued use. A meeting photograph involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi showed a visible Philips air purifier (model AC1217, priced at ₹14,000, or about $170), sparking public debate over priorities amid Delhi’s worsening air pollution crisis.
Prime minister’s residence
Air purifiers are installed at the prime minister’s official residence at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg. A 2025 controversy surrounding a visible Philips air purifier in a meeting photo featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi and industrialist Gautam Adani placed the device in a residential-office setting at the prime minister’s home. Critics noted that multiple such devices are likely in use at the residence. While broader government spending patterns on VVIP bungalows support this assessment, exact figures for air purifiers at the prime minister’s residence are not publicly itemized.
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Other ministers’ residences
Other ministers’ official residences in Lutyens’ Delhi are also equipped with air purifiers, often at government expense. RTI disclosures have indicated that purifiers were purchased for ministers’ bungalows alongside installations in Parliament and the prime minister’s facilities.
In 2025, the Delhi government ordered 15 “smart” air purifiers for the Secretariat, including ministers’ offices, at a total cost of ₹5.45 lakh (about $6,600), citing the need to improve indoor air quality. Former IPS officer Kiran Bedi criticized the move in November 2025, calling for a ban on government-funded air purifiers in official residences so that leaders would “breathe the same air” as ordinary citizens — a remark that implicitly pointed to their widespread use across government housing.
Foreign embassies
Most foreign embassies in New Delhi rely extensively on air purifiers due to the city’s hazardous air quality.
The U.S. Embassy uses large-capacity Blueair 500 and 600 Series air purifiers, including the Blueair 503, across its premises. In November 2025, the embassy issued a tender for 1,200 True HEPA filter sets to support round-the-clock operations. Earlier, in 2015, it had procured about 1,800 air purifiers for staff residences.
The Slovenian Embassy has installed Smart Air Blast and Blast Mini HEPA purifiers, capable of covering up to 5,000 square feet, prioritizing cost-effective and low-noise filtration. Embassies of France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Pakistan, Switzerland, and Afghanistan have also equipped their offices with air purifiers since 2016. Several missions subsidize purifier units for staff homes, distribute N95 masks, and suspend outdoor activities during peak pollution episodes.
These measures reflect a broader international response to Delhi’s air-quality crisis, with embassies often leading adoption due to strict health protocols for expatriate staff.
On Nov. 23, citizens including students, parents, and environmental activists gathered at the India Gate C-Hexagon area to demand urgent government action as air quality hovered between “very poor” and “severe.” Protesters held placards and chanted slogans such as “Clean air is everyone’s right.”
Police and security personnel intervened to disperse the gathering, citing traffic obstruction, including potential disruption to emergency services. Tensions escalated into a scuffle, during which some protesters allegedly used pepper or chili spray, injuring several officers. More than 20 people were arrested in two separate cases and booked on charges including assault, obstruction of duty, and blocking public roads.
In December, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a brief 24-hour visit to Delhi as the city’s AQI crossed 400–450 in several areas, officially classified as “severe” to “severe-plus.” Some monitoring stations recorded levels nearing 480–500. The episode drew public attention to the contrast between high-level diplomatic visits and the everyday reality faced by millions of Delhi residents living through extreme air pollution.