Impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak on Society, Air Quality, and Economy in India: A Study of Three “P”s of Sustainability in India

Sayanti Kar, Indrajit Ghosh, Sebanti Show, Arunabh Sen, Tanya Gupta, Poushali Chowdhury, Tamasha Chatterjee and Abhishek RoyChowdhury
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Sayanti Kar: Department of Environment Science, Asutosh College, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal 700026, India
Indrajit Ghosh: Department of Environment Science, Asutosh College, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal 700026, India
Sebanti Show: Department of Business Administration, University of Kalyani, Kalyani, West Bengal 741235, India
Arunabh Sen: Department of Civil Engineering, IIEST, Howrah, West Bengal 711103, India
Tanya Gupta: Department of Environment Science, Asutosh College, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal 700026, India
Poushali Chowdhury: Department of Environment Science, Asutosh College, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal 700026, India
Tamasha Chatterjee: Department of Environment Science, Asutosh College, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal 700026, India
Abhishek RoyChowdhury: Environmental Science and Natural Resources Program, School of Science, Navajo Technical University, Crownpoint, NM 87313, USA

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 5, 1-25

Abstract: The outbreak of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic forced affected countries to implement strict lockdown to contain the spread of this disease before the advent of the vaccine. This containment resulted in social and economic crisis globally. This study evaluated the impact of COVID-19 on three “P” s of sustainability (Planet, People, and Profit) in India. A comparative analysis was conducted by evaluating the available secondary data in different sectors during the pre-lockdown and lockdown period. Seven major air quality parameters: particulate matter (PM 2.5 and PM 10 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), ammonia (NH 3 ), carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone (O 3 ) were studied in six states of India to review the ambient air quality status. Stratified random sampling technique was used in this study for collective portrayal of the country’s air quality. A drastic cutback of the level of PM 2.5 and PM 10 with significant increase of O 3 was observed in the lockdown phase for most of the selected monitoring stations. A significant change in level of PM 2.5 and PM 10 was observed when t -test was performed in between the pre-lockdown and lockdown period. Improvement of ambient air quality was also observed considering the air quality index (AQI) during lockdown. The trend and volatility of two broad Indian stock market indices, SENSEX and NIFTY-50, were analyzed, and results showed that both the indices have recovered during the forty-day lockdown phase. The potential effects of the crisis on various sectors of Indian economy were assessed in this study, and a set of policy recommendations for these sectors were suggested.

Keywords: air quality index (AQI), COVID-19; lockdown; psychological crisis; stock market; sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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