How delayed civic polls choked Bengaluru’s air quality?

The hold successful holding civic assemblage polls has not lone affected section medication successful Bengaluru but has besides led to the stalling of a whopping ₹1,475.90 crore nether the 15th Finance Commission’s million-plus cities challenge, aimed astatine improving aerial quality.

While the stalled funds themselves look mammoth, the interaction of losing them has besides affected aerial prime and particulate substance levels successful Bengaluru, which person seen a dependable emergence implicit the past 5 years. For example, the Air Quality Index (AQI), which earlier averaged betwixt the 60s and 90s successful the city, has present crossed the 120 mark. In March 2026, the highest recorded AQI stood astatine 141, according to the metropolis AQI dashboard.