India’s capital city Delhi becoming a suffocating gas chamber and the basic necessity of life, i.e., oxygen or broadly pure air, becoming a precious commodity for Delhites is indeed a grave situation and perhaps a domestic issue deserving the highest priority. That the progress of civilization should take mankind to a state where the authorities are compelled to declare a health emergency is indeed baffling. Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi stands at 430 at the time of writing this note, against the satisfactory level of upto 100 and above 300 being considered as severely polluted.
Ever increasing motor vehicle emissions, drift / mist emissions from the wet cooling towers, agricultural stubble burning, particularly by the neighbouring States of Punjab and Haryana, burning of heavy metal rich fire-crackers, wood-burning fires, fires on agricultural land, exhaust from diesel generators, Badarpur Thermal Power Station, (a coal-fired power plant), dust from construction sites, burning garbage, illegal industrial activities, fast disappearing tree population have all contributed their share in the present plight of Delhi.
The air quality in Delhi, according to a WHO survey of 1600 world cities, is the worst of any major city in the world. Air pollution in India is estimated to kill 1.5 million people every year; it is the fifth largest killer in India. In Delhi, poor quality air irreversibly damages the lungs of 2.2 million or 50 percent of all children. Breathlessness, chest constriction, irritation in eyes, asthma, allergy have become very common among the residents of our capital city as per media reports.
Delhi should be an eye opener for entire India with more cites lining up to join the tribe of Delhi. Entire India must be hoping that the issue is tackled on a war footing. The present juncture warrants an approach of striking at the roots from the powers that be. Among the several steps that could be implemented, the authorities should strategise for the public resorting to more of public transport system and lesser dependence on own vehicles, making five day working day mandatory for all offices across sectors to reduce the daily commuting of travelers, planting more and more trees for acting as a shield from dust, more incentivisation for purchasing and using electric vehicles, disincentivisation for using petrol and diesel vehicles, encouragement of CNG run vehicles, banning of all sorts of crackers, allowing burning of agricultural wastes only in desolate areas, resorting to the use of incinerators wherever possible, imposing strict controls on generation of dust from construction sites, encouraging car pooling, particularly among office goers, companies switching over to the use of electric buses for transportation of their employees, more employers providing electricity powered transport to their employees, doing frequent vaccum cleaning of streets, doing water sprinkling on more and more roads etc.
We should be concerned about not only the present population, but also the future generations. Such is the gravity of the issue, which is likely to engulf more cities in India in the short run. Media reports indicate that Delhi government is seized of the issue harnessing all resources at their disposal. *Out of genuine concern, a host of humble suggestions including a few short term and a few long term strategies has been sent to Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi CM for his consideration.*
Delhi’s situation is really worrisome.
Ever increasing motor vehicle emissions, drift / mist emissions from the wet cooling towers, agricultural stubble burning, particularly by the neighbouring States of Punjab and Haryana, burning of heavy metal rich fire-crackers, wood-burning fires, fires on agricultural land, exhaust from diesel generators, Badarpur Thermal Power Station, (a coal-fired power plant), dust from construction sites, burning garbage, illegal industrial activities, fast disappearing tree population have all contributed their share in the present plight of Delhi.
The air quality in Delhi, according to a WHO survey of 1600 world cities, is the worst of any major city in the world. Air pollution in India is estimated to kill 1.5 million people every year; it is the fifth largest killer in India. In Delhi, poor quality air irreversibly damages the lungs of 2.2 million or 50 percent of all children. Breathlessness, chest constriction, irritation in eyes, asthma, allergy have become very common among the residents of our capital city as per media reports.
Delhi should be an eye opener for entire India with more cites lining up to join the tribe of Delhi. Entire India must be hoping that the issue is tackled on a war footing. The present juncture warrants an approach of striking at the roots from the powers that be. Among the several steps that could be implemented, the authorities should strategise for the public resorting to more of public transport system and lesser dependence on own vehicles, making five day working day mandatory for all offices across sectors to reduce the daily commuting of travelers, planting more and more trees for acting as a shield from dust, more incentivisation for purchasing and using electric vehicles, disincentivisation for using petrol and diesel vehicles, encouragement of CNG run vehicles, banning of all sorts of crackers, allowing burning of agricultural wastes only in desolate areas, resorting to the use of incinerators wherever possible, imposing strict controls on generation of dust from construction sites, encouraging car pooling, particularly among office goers, companies switching over to the use of electric buses for transportation of their employees, more employers providing electricity powered transport to their employees, doing frequent vaccum cleaning of streets, doing water sprinkling on more and more roads etc.
We should be concerned about not only the present population, but also the future generations. Such is the gravity of the issue, which is likely to engulf more cities in India in the short run. Media reports indicate that Delhi government is seized of the issue harnessing all resources at their disposal. *Out of genuine concern, a host of humble suggestions including a few short term and a few long term strategies has been sent to Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi CM for his consideration.*
Delhi’s situation is really worrisome.
