A layer of mist and smog is seen over Kartavya Path in New Delhi on December 28, 2025. Air quality remains in the ‘very poor’ category with an Air Quality Index.
| Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
Akums Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. a listed drug manufacturer, informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that its president of Finance, Rajkumar Bafna, stepped down from the position citing pollution in New Delhi.
Mr. Bafna going by public records had worked in Akum for decades and had taken over the senior management positions just three to four months back.
“I would like to inform you that due to Delhi Pollution level I m resigning from my position as President Finance,” Mr. Bafna said in an email to the management requesting that he be relieved “asap,” and would be available for any help during the transition.
The company accepted Bafna’s request and said that he would be relieved with effect from December 31 2025.
The company is leading third-party drug manufacturer which hasi manufactured formulations for 26 of the 30 leading pharmaceutical companies in the country which include Sun Pharmaceuticals, Cipla and Dr. Reddy’s among others, according to its Annual Reports.
This is probably the first public instance that the senior management personnel of a listed company has cited pollution in Delhi NCR as the reason behind resignation. This is however not the first time people at senior positions in the country have flagged the pollution in Delhi.
The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highway Nitin Gadkari said that he developed infections within just two days in Delhi because of the pollution and that 40% of it came from vehicles, while speaking at event in New Delhi four days ago. An increasing number of people living in Delhi consider relocating to a different place in India as city’s air has made it uninhabitable.
According to the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, the PM2.5 content in Delhi air reached a high of 526 microgram per cubic metre on December 22, 2025. This is about 9 times the standard of 60 microgram per cubic metre.
Published – December 28, 2025 06:12 pm IST
