India

Intelligence for Better Decision Making

Delhi’s Escalating Air Quality Crisis and Policy Initiatives
Dec. 2, 2025 | Environment

Delhi’s deteriorating air quality remains a critical public health and policy challenge.

**At 7 am on December 1, 2025, Delhi’s air quality index climbed to 299, up from 279 the previous evening and just two points shy of the ‘very poor’ category.**
Twenty-three monitoring stations recorded ‘very poor’ levels, with Nehru Nagar posting the highest reading at 354 and NSIT Dwarka the lowest at 195. Areas such as Rohini, Bawana, RK Puram, Mundka, and Punjabi Bagh all registered AQIs above 320, while Anand Vihar, Jahangirpuri, Vivek Vihar, Shadipur, and Pusa remained firmly in the ‘very poor’ bracket. A dense smog layer settled over landmarks like ITO and India Gate, illustrating the pollution’s widespread impact.

**Despite this spike, the January–November 2025 average AQI in the Delhi-NCR stood at 187, the lowest in eight years aside from the 2020 lockdown period.**
This represented a steady improvement from averages of 201 in 2024, 190 in 2023, 199 in 2022, 197 in 2021, 203 in 2019, and 213 in 2018. The region experienced only three days in the ‘severe’ category this year—down from 11 days in 2024 and 12 in 2023—and recorded no readings above 450. Authorities also noted that PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations reached their lowest levels in two years.

**On November 29, the Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region downgraded its Graded Response Action Plan’s ‘severe’ measures from Stage IV to Stage III.**
NCR state governments and the Delhi administration will now decide whether to operate public, municipal, and private offices at 50 percent capacity, with the remainder of staff working remotely. Central government departments will await directives from the appropriate central administration on remote work arrangements.

**Meanwhile, former IPS officer and ex-Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry Kiran Bedi proposed drafting a comprehensive “White Paper” on Delhi’s air pollution crisis.**
The document would assign accountability by identifying policy failures and inherited challenges, then establish a time-bound recovery plan that designates specific responsibilities to government agencies and citizens.

**Within that framework, Bedi emphasized the dual role of all stakeholders as both contributors to and solvers of the crisis.**
She called for strict enforcement of regulations alongside large-scale public awareness campaigns through media and educational channels. She also recommended daily field inspections of dusty roads, construction sites, and other emission sources, urging enhanced coordination across agencies and minimal reliance on paperwork.

**Building on these recommendations, Bedi urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convene monthly virtual review meetings involving the PM’s office, Delhi’s administration, and neighboring states.**
She proposed engaging the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change; the Commission for Air Quality Management; state governments; municipal bodies; and district magistrates to conduct daily compliance checks on emissions, construction activity, road dust, and traffic management across the NCR.

**Bedi also criticized officials’ reliance on air purifiers in government offices and official vehicles, arguing that such measures prevent them from experiencing the pollution levels endured by the public.**
She warned that weeks of ‘very poor’ air quality continue to pose serious health risks to children, the elderly, and people with respiratory conditions.
India-Russia Defense Partnership Advances with High-Level Talks and Arms Supply Commitments
Dec. 2, 2025 | Geopolitics & Defense

India and Russia’s defense partnership is reinforced by ongoing arms supplies and planned high-level negotiations.

**India and Russia maintain a Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership under which Russia has long supplied the bulk of India’s military hardware.**
Despite New Delhi’s efforts to diversify its arms imports with acquisitions from the United States and Europe, Moscow remains a key provider. Over the four years ending in 2024, India’s purchases of Russian weaponry declined, yet Russia still supplies a significant portion of India’s defense inventory, including more than 200 fighter jets and multiple S-400 missile defence batteries, which India deployed during last May’s conflict with Pakistan. At the same time, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh has confirmed that India will sustain its long-standing cooperation with Russia even as it pursues new deals with Western suppliers.

**Meanwhile, facing a shortage of combat aircraft, the Indian Air Force is exploring purchases of next-generation Su-57 stealth fighters.**
Officials argue that existing training, logistics, and maintenance infrastructure at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited will ease the transition to these jets, whose advanced long-range missile capabilities would bolster India’s beyond-visual-range engagement capacity.

**Looking ahead, during President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi in early December 2025, Indian leaders plan to discuss acquiring the Su-57 and an advanced variant of Russia’s S-500 missile defence shield.**
Although the US administration is urging India to limit military dealings with Moscow, both sides do not anticipate finalizing formal contracts on this trip.

**They will also address delays in delivering the remaining S-400 batteries, with Russia pledging to complete shipments in India’s 2026-27 financial year.**
The agenda will extend to accelerating upgrades for Su-30 multirole fighters and advancing joint defence projects, all within the broader framework of sustained bilateral cooperation.

Monitored Intelligence for India - Dec. 3, 2025


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Govt turns to short-term hires to plug DGCA’s wide manpower gaps

Livemint | English | News | Dec. 3, 2025 | UndeterminedEmployment

India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is facing significant manpower shortages, with nearly half of its sanctioned posts vacant. Of 1,630 sanctioned positions, 801 remain unfilled as of late 2025, prompting the DGCA to resort to short-term contractual hires, usually for one year, to bridge the gap. Despite creating 441 new posts since 2022, predominantly technical roles, about 50% of positions remain vacant, and the overall sanctioned strength has slightly decreased.

Between 2020 and 2025, the DGCA workforce increased from 762 to 878 employees, but unfilled positions rose from 471 to 814, even as India’s commercial aircraft fleet expanded from 566 to 780 planes. This growth has outpaced staffing, raising concerns about the regulator’s capacity to maintain effective oversight and air safety. Officials claim that the shortage has not yet impacted surveillance plans, but critics highlight ongoing risks.

Experts warn that the short-term hiring approach is insufficient to address structural staffing deficits. Aviation specialists note that with nearly 2,000 aircraft requiring inspection and only 830 DGCA staff, each inspector is responsible for multiple aircraft, far exceeding global staffing averages. Short-term contracts cover only a fraction of the gap, and persistent recruitment challenges stem from unattractive job terms and low incentives. Without systematic, ongoing recruitment, the DGCA’s effective regulatory capacity could significantly diminish as the aviation sector continues to grow rapidly.

Quantum Computing: Global Development, Military Applications and India’s Initiatives

Vivekananda International Foundation | English | AcademicThink | Dec. 3, 2025 | UndeterminedTech Development/Adoption

Quantum computing emerges from nearly a century of scientific developments in quantum mechanics, which revealed that matter and energy at the subatomic level exhibit dual particle-wave behavior governed by principles such as uncertainty, superposition, entanglement, interference, and decoherence. Unlike classical binary computing based on bits (0 or 1), quantum computing uses qubits that can exist simultaneously in multiple states, enabling highly complex and multidimensional computations that vastly exceed classical capabilities.

Globally, countries including the US, China, Russia, Canada, Germany, and India are advancing quantum computing and communication technologies. China has established the world's first extensive quantum communication network spanning 4,600 km, while Japan and Russia are advancing toward 100 and 1,000 qubit computers respectively. The US is pursuing a quantum internet and investing heavily in workforce development in this field.

Military applications stand to benefit significantly from quantum computing’s security and computational advantages. Quantum key distribution and entangled quantum networks promise ultra-secure communications, while superposition and entanglement improve battlefield sensing, terrain and weather mapping, and decision-making speed and accuracy. Quantum technology could revolutionize submarine communications by enabling undetectable, high-bandwidth data transfer at optimal depths, overcoming the limitations of current low-frequency systems.

Currently, quantum computing complements rather than replaces classical binary systems; quantum technology is suited for complex problems and specialized scenarios where digital systems are inadequate. The high costs and technical challenges of maintaining quantum hardware, such as ultra-low temperature superconductors, limit widespread adoption, though more affordable quantum devices using photons, free electrons, and phonons are being developed.

India’s strategic initiatives include the National Quantum Mission approved in 2023 with a budget of Rs 6,000 crores spanning 2023-2031. Research is underway in over 100 universities, supported by industry collaborations like Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys, which partners with Israel. Indian startups have developed significant quantum computing hardware including a 64-qubit chip (Kaveri) and a 25-qubit full-stack computer (Indus), with quantum communication trials over 100 km successfully conducted. Commercial availability of these technologies is expected by mid-2026.

Quantum computing offers enhanced security, complex scientific problem-solving, and improved communication capabilities, particularly for military use. Despite rapid advancements and strategic investments, including in India, quantum computing is still evolving and unlikely to fundamentally change the nature of warfare, which remains driven by geopolitical and human factors, with technology serving as an enabler rather than a transformative force.

Chennai, Bengaluru among airports where aircraft encountered GPS spoofing

The Hindu | English | News | Dec. 3, 2025 | Cyber Attacks and Data Loss

Complaints of GPS spoofing, involving counterfeit satellite signals affecting aircraft, have been reported at multiple Indian airports including Kolkata, Amritsar, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Chennai. The Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu confirmed that some flights near Delhi airport also experienced GPS spoofing incidents in early November 2025, which affected aircraft position data and terrain warnings.

Following these events, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) requested the Wireless Monitoring Organisation (WMO) to identify the sources of interference and have mobilized additional resources to trace the spoofing based on information from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and AAI. These GPS disruptions have become increasingly common near India’s borders with Pakistan and Myanmar, where spoofing is used to counter drone activities.

Indian defense forces later issued notices alerting aviators to possible GNSS signal disruptions near Mumbai and Kolkata due to military exercises. The incidents near Delhi were widely believed to be linked to Indian military activities, specifically the tri-service exercises including the Indian Air Force’s Exercise MahaGujRaj-25 conducted in north-western India during the same period.

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