We Must Remain Angry About Air Pollution: Sunita Narain

In her book ‘Conflicts of Interest,’ Sunita Narain traces the history of India’s most urgent environmental issues.

In her new book ‘Conflicts of Interest’, Sunita Narain looks back at decades of activism to trace the history (and future) of India’s most urgent environmental issues. 

(Photo: Maanvi/The Quint)

‘Our Life is About the Immediate’

‘Looking back is a privilege,’ Narain begins her book with this line, while asserting that as environmentalists it is necessary to maintain a ‘tunnel vision.’ So what prompted her to write a book in which she analyses every issue in a historical context? Speaking on the nature of the work of environmentalists, Narain told The Quint that activism often focuses on the current issue with an immediate question on how to solve the problem at hand and this book gave her a rare opportunity to analyse “what has worked and what hasn’t.”

‘Must Stay Angry on Air Pollution’

In 1999, when Center of Science and Environment (CSE), where Sunita Narain was working, did a study on pollution emitted by diesel particles in India, it was a different world. Looking back on the time, Narain says:

Nobody was willing to accept there was something called air pollution, automobile companies took us to court!

In 2017, diesel pollutes the air is an accepted logic but the problem of smog still persists in Delhi. Have things changed? Yes, says Narain. “There is awareness that this quality of air is unacceptable. We are angry and we must ensure that we stay angry.”

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