School, Sporting Events Canceled While Delhi Chokes On Worst Smog In 25 Years

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The upshot this year: air quality has plummeted to a point not seen in nearly two decades, according to the Centre for Science and Environment, an environmental advocacy group.

As levels of the most harmful airborne particles climbed to 16 times the safe limit, local officials were finally forced to act over the weekend. Emergency measures were announced to shut schools and suspend all construction work to stop the spread of dust. A large coal-based power plant on Delhi’s outskirts that in the past has been singled out as a major source of pollutants has been shut down until mid-November, while the city government said it was considering bringing back road rationing to tackle the crisis. “Pollution has increased to an extent that [the] outdoors in Delhi are resembling a gas chamber,” Delhi’s top elected official, Arvind Kejriwal, said on Saturday.

Every aspect of life in the city of more than 25 million people has been affected. State-level cricket contests have been postponed, as players complained of headaches from the foul air, and reduced visibility has been blamed for road accidents. On Nov. 3, the haze was said to have caused a 20-car pileup that injured at least 12 people. Meanwhile, an increasing number of residents are reported to be seeking medical help for respiratory illnesses triggered by Delhi’s toxic pollution.

The exposure can be life-threatening. One report published last year said Delhi’s worsening air quality was responsible for as many 30,000 deaths each year. Another survey, which looked at the impact of air pollution on children, found that schoolkids in Delhi had weaker lungs compared with their counterparts in other large Indian cities. As protection, those who can afford them are buying up masks and air purifiers, with retailers reporting brisk sales in recent days.

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http://time.com/4560205/india-new-delhi-smog-pollution/?xid=homepage

[hedda_foil]

1. Thank you. I just sent this to my daughter who works in India and has very bad asthma.

She is often in New Delhi for meetings.