50 YCAN members worked diligently to conduct the survey across 1500 respondents in 15 locations in Delhi. These locations were identified by YCAN members as major pollution sources – many of them having experienced it first-hand in their own neighborhoods. The respondents were chosen randomly and across demographic markers of gender, occupation and age.

The surveys allowed YCAN members to glean some valuable insights about the level of awareness amongst the general public about issues relating to air pollution. About 55.63% of the respondents believed that air pollution was the most important cause of concern for the city, as opposed to water, waste and other kinds of pollution. This was indicative of a steady realization amongst the citizens about the emergence of air pollution as a major issue for Delhi. Moreover, when asked about the effect of pollution on the quality of life, more than 50% of the respondents mentioned health effects such as breathlessness, increase in respiratory disorders and the desire to move out of the city due to general discomfort.

An important point that emerged from this survey was  that a large proportion of the sample (73.8%) were unaware that they had access to air quality data. Hence, awareness building and making air quality data more accessible needed to be further worked into- YCAN is already working on this through its activities and apps like VAYU. On a positive note, respondents were able to identify both large-scale and individual-level initiatives to curb the air pollution issue. At an individual level, respondents highlighted that they would be willing to use public transport, carpool, and plant more trees as a beginning to curb air pollution.

The perception survey was a part of CAA India’s efforts to increase outreach for action on air pollution in Indian cities. It revealed that there is a general acceptance of the fact that collaborative efforts between the government, civil society, industry and citizenry is needed to make cities cleaner and more livable. YCAN aims to achieve this by spreading its network across multiple cities.