NEW DELHI: A year ago, in May 2015, an India correspondent of The New York Times quit his job in New Delhi after his eight-year old son fell chronically ill due to the city's air quality. In his parting column, he warned all those who could leave the city behind to do so to avoid premature death.
While the piece attracted criticism back then for being alarmist, it almost holds true in the present scenario. With nearly 17,000 schools in the city being forced to stay shut on Saturday, the message is clear. Delhi is a highly unlivable place at this point, thanks to the air pollution that has broken a 17-year record.
Firecrackers and crop burning after Diwali are the primary culprits for the recent spike. The concentration of PM 2.5, tiny particles that can cause diseases ranging from lung cancer to chronic asthma, averaged close to 700 micrograms per cubic metre of air.
That is a whopping 70 times higher than safe limit set by the WHO. And the damage is much higher on children than adults. "Air pollutants stunt lung growth in children, thereby reducing their life expectancy," say experts. According to the UNICEF, more than six lakh children die every year due to air pollution, a big chunk of which is from India.
The Delhi government had promised a slew of measures to combat the menace. It ranged from short-term measures like mist fountains, air purifiers, odd-even car scheme to long-term ones like controlling crop burning and embracing cleaner fuel standards. Unfortunately, almost all of these measures are still only on paper. And even as millions of Delhiites risk their health with every breath, the State and Union governments are busy playing the blame-game.