Experts Advocate for Pakistan-India Collaboration on Pollution Crisis

Experts from Pakistan and India stressed the urgency of enhanced transboundary cooperation to combat the air pollution crisis affecting both nations during a seminar held by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) in Islamabad on Wednesday. The seminar emphasized the need for scientific knowledge and data sharing to address not only air pollution but also other pressing issues like climate change, environmental pollution, and water mismanagement.

Abid Qaiyum Suleri, the executive director of SDPI, identified agricultural waste burning, transportation, and industrial emissions as the primary pollution sources in the region. He described these emissions as “slow poisons” degrading the atmosphere daily. “We can identify areas and develop synergies in research and policy discourse, while the critical role of civil society organizations, researchers, and experts is to forge new paths for solutions,” Suleri noted.

Happymon Jacob, an associate professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, highlighted the significance of bilateral collaboration between the two countries in managing and researching transboundary air pollution. “Climate cooperation is most achievable if conducted bilaterally. … The shift from noncooperation to mutual cooperation between Pakistan and India is crucial,” Jacob said.

The experts collectively expressed that improved cooperation would bring South Asian countries closer together, fostering region-wide solutions to challenges such as pollution, water management, climate change, and migration.