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Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment. These harmful materials are called pollutants. Pollutants can be natural, such as volcanic ash. They can also be created by human activity, such as trash or runoff produced by factories. Pollutants damage the quality of air, water, and land.

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Air pollution is the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials.

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Water pollution is the release of substances into bodies of water that makes water unsafe for human use and disrupts aquatic ecosystems.

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Noise pollution is generally defined as regular exposure to elevated sound levels that may lead to adverse effects in humans or other living organisms

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Plastic Pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and other things made up of plastic) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects wildlife, wildlife habitat, and humans.

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The Air Quality Index of Sikkim is 91 which is considered to be satisfactory air quality index.

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To prevent, control and abate air pollution in the country, the Government of India enacted Central legislation called the Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 (referred to as the Air Act, 1981).

Every polluting industry must obtain a consent from the State Pollution Control Board for the discharge of air pollutants in any form through chimney.

The State Board may lay down suitable conditions while giving consent to discharge air pollutants in the light of emission standards developed by the Central Board, subsequently notified through the rules framed under the Environment (protection) Act, 1986 Rules.

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With a number of industrial units in the state, Sikkim under the National Air Monitoring Programme (NAMP) has established nine(09) Air Quality Monitoring (AQM) stations in order to monitor the air quality in the state.

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Sikkim, a northeastern state in the Eastern Himalayas, is important not only because it shares boundaries with three nations, viz. Nepal, Bhutan and China, but also due to its immense biodiversity. The state displays a number of contrasts with respect to water resources with waterfalls, springs, rivers and lakes that attract tourists and revenue on one hand and recurring landslides, blocked roadways, water contamination and water scarcity.

A comparative field study was conducted during January 2011, of available water in Namchi, Gangtok and Singtam areas of Sikkim and the quality and quantity of water, and their time-dependent variations during the year were assessed
The study found that there was a significant variation in terms of water quality and quantity in different areas of Sikkim. It was found that water management in terms of supply of water to all cities and households and the existing infrastructure was inadequate to meet local demands.

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In Sikkim, especially in the rural areas where there is no supply of treated water for drinking and other domestic uses, natural surface water is the only source. The objective was to assess the water quality of natural sources of water in the rural areas of East Sikkim using a water quality index (WQI) for different seasons. A total of 225 samples, that is, 75 in winter, 75 in summer, and 75 in monsoon were collected from different sources for physicochemical analysis, and a WQI was calculated. The water quality values ranged 32.01-96.71. The results showed that most of the water samples were in poor condition (85.3%) and very few of them were in good condition (2.6%). The water quality of the natural sources indicated that the water is poor-quality and not totally safe for human consumption, and that it needs treatment before consumption

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In Sikkim, over 80% of the rural households depend on dhara for drinking water. Two of the state’s four districts, West Sikkim and South Sikkim, are rain shadow and, thus, drought prone. “After monsoon, there is a long queue at our spring to collect water.
Sikkim’s dhara are drying up because, according to a 2012 report released by the state government, their catchment areas have been negatively affected by growing population, topsoil erosion, erratic rainfall, deforestation, forest fires and road building.

A recent report by the NITI Aayog states that nearly 30% of the springs in the Indian Himalayan region are drying while 50% are discharging less water than a few years ago.

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Sikkim has been monitoring the noise level at major town locations. The noise level monitored at Titanic Park, Gangtok has been within permissible limits as per the noise level data before and during Deepawali festival.

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It is attributed to the fact that most people have refrained from using firecrackers and the collective initiative taken by the general public and the State government to reduce air pollution has been successful.

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The prohibition on bursting of firecrackers in the State has considerably improved the ambient air quality of the State.

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Diwali was celebrated in Sikkim with lights and sparkles but minus the noise and chemical pollution that has come to be associated with the festival of lights elsewhere in the country

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One of the major factor of noise pollution is tourism also.
Sikkim has lost it's silent Valleys...!

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The tiny state of Sikkim nestled in the Himalayas in northeastern India has been leading a green revolution of its own kind. Despite being small and isolated, and with its people leading their lives in extremely tough mountainous terrain, Sikkim has emerged as one of India’s environmental leaders.

Sikkim, which in 1998 became the first Indian state to ban disposable plastic bags, is also among the first to target single-use plastic bottles. In 2016, Sikkim took two major decisions. It banned the use of packaged drinking water in government offices and government events. Second, it banned the use of Styrofoam and thermocol disposable plates and cutlery in the entire state in a move to cut down toxic plastic pollution and tackle its ever-increasing garbage problem.

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How this revolution started & how it's going

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How this revolution started & how it's going

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With the large number of tourists visiting Sikkim, it is challenging to control the use of plastic water bottles.  The government is considering banning plastic bottles in the entire state, meaning that tourists would need to get their drinking water from filters in hotels, restaurants and public spaces.

Instead of plastic bags, people are opting for non-woven polypropylene bags which have a texture of cloth but are actually plastic. People are using it thinking it is eco-friendly. Also multi-layered plastics like tetrapacks, chips packets are a problem. The local government is working towards gradually phasing it out too. People are encouraged to carry their own cloth bags when they go out for shopping.

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Sikkim is a small and biodiversity-rich area and hence has limited space for garbage dumps. It has already stretched its limit and opting for new landfill sites is neither an easy option nor permissible as it would mean taking over forest land that’s home to endangered wildlife.

It is estimated that with the growing population and rising consumerism, the world’s plastic bottle consumption will increase to half a trillion annually by 2021. Studies have also suggested that some compounds in plastics may threaten human health.

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Studies by Delhi-based Toxics Link and Pune-based eCoexist NGOs conducted in 2014 and 2018, respectively, showed that, despite the continued use of plastic bags, Sikkim has fared quite well in the implementation of its green policies. eCoexist’s study found that around 66 per cent of shops in Sikkim used paper bags or newspapers and around 34 per cent used plastic bags, which includes non-woven bags.

Through penalties, state-level policies and a mass awareness programme, this tiny state is well on its way to becoming free of the scourge of plastic pollution.

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The air quality in Delhi, the capital territory of India, according to a WHO survey of 1,650 world cities, and a survey of 7,000 world cities by the US-based Health Effects Institute in August 2022,[2] is the worst of any major city in the world. It also affects the districts around Delhi.[3][4] Air pollution in India is estimated to kill about 2 million people every year; it is the fifth largest killer in India. India has the world's highest death rate from chronic respiratory diseases and asthma, according to the WHO. In Delhi, poor quality air irreversibly damages the lungs of 2.2 million or 50 percent of all children.

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During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in India, The water quality of the Yamuna and Ganges river basins have improved as industries are closed due to the lockdown.The air quality has also significantly improved during the lockdown.

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In Delhi, the local and civic bodies – the three MCDs, NDMC and Delhi Cantonment Board -- are not empowered to initiate legal action under Noise Pollution (Regulation & Control) Rules. The only option available to them is to report the violation to designated authorities. It was felt that without active participation of local bodies, noise pollution cannot be effectively controlled and curbed in Delhi.

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Delhi generates the biggest volume of plastic waste among the metros, Atin Biswas, programme director, municipal solid waste unit, CSE, said, “The main reason is population density. Delhi’s population has risen over 200% between 1951 and 2001, according to data sourced from NCR Planning Board, government of India. Besides, the municipal solid waste is disposed of with hardly any segregation.

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Waste segregation in Delhi is not as good as in certain pockets of other metropolitan cities. The level of awareness is higher among residents in Mumbai and Bengaluru.