Completed For increasingly large sections of the urban population, food security is becoming a luxury. In India, 80 per cent of urban households typically spend 70 per cent of their income on food (Mongeot, 1994). Several studies have shown the significance of urban agriculture as a survival strategy in the face of escalating food prices and decreasing incomes in sub-Saharan Africa, East and South East Asia and Latin America (for example, Drakakis-Smith, 1992; Mbiba, 1995; UNDP, 1996). However, little research has addressed these issues in the Indian context. Air pollution is one of the main threats to food production in these areas. Furthermore, the levels of damaging air pollutants in urban and peri-urban areas are rapidly worsening as urban concentrations of pollutants such as sulphur dioxide often exceed critical levels set to prevent adverse effects on crop performance. Increased numbers of motor vehicles, power generation, industrialisation, domestic fuel use, refuse burning and other sources, all contribute to the problem. These pollutants cause visible damage to crop plants, significantly reduce crop yield, the urban poor will be most affected. Industrial development is also often concentrated on the outskirts of cities, areas that are also very important for meeting urban food requirements. There are only limited examples of successful measures for addressing air pollution in developing countries. Whilst the necessary legislation may exist on paper, this legislation is rarely enforced in practice due to the wide variety of constraints facing many developing countries' governments, planning departments, industrial infrastructure and environmental enforcement agencies, and the rapid growth of emission sources. Furthermore, measures are usually aimed at reducing the direct pollutant impacts on human health; these measures are not necessarily those which would have the greatest benefit for urban and peri-urban cropping. The indirect effects of air pollution on human health, through reduced food availability, could be as significant as the direct effects. For these reasons a major challenge for this research will be to investigate and develop policies and other instruments which can work in this context, to reduce air pollution impacts on urban crops. To assess the impacts and losses of agricultural production due to air pollution on the livelihoods of the poor in developing country megacities, to identify the causes of these impacts, and to recommend policy measures to alleviate the effects. Assessement of the nature, extent and significance or urban and peri-urban agriculture in India.Assessment of the importance of air pollution to agriculture in urban/peri-urban areas in India.Assessment of the significance of this issue to the local community and economy.Identification of policy measures to ameliorate these effects and assessment of their potential effectiveness. This will include the development of tools to synthesise analysis of impacts of air pollution on urban agriculture alongside those on health and materials.Improved capacity to link grass roots organisations with researchers and government bodies to influence environmental policy in India.Increased awareness of both impacts and policy implications at local, national and global levels.