He wakes up every morning in the same suffocating landscape that accompanies him until late at night.
The 30 million inhabitants of India’s capital spend their days with persistent headaches and irritated eyes. Symptoms that capture the inability of a rising superpower to provide the most basic commodity: clean air.
Experts at the state’s leading hospital describe the situation as “serious and life-threatening”. Levels of toxic pollutants — from cars, factories and the burning of crop residues — reach up to 20 times higher than internationally accepted safe breathing limits.
Despite the fact that other once polluted metropolises, such as Beijing, have managed to clean up their atmosphere, New Delhi remains trapped in its own “fog of death”.
A 24 hour in the cloud
As air pollution worsened to such an extent that the government was forced to telecommute half of its civil servants, reporters criss-crossed the city for an entire 24-hour period — from before dawn to midnight.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his address to the media on the first day of the Winter Session of Parliament, in New Delhi, with this remark. The opposition has planned to raise the issue of air pollution in the Parliament as Delhi continues to reel under toxic air, as well…
— Spot On (@Spotnews_media)
Measurements of PM2.5, the most dangerous microparticles, revealed that in key parts of the city, the values were many times the limit of 15 μg/m³, which is considered safe for health.
The conclusion was clear: a city with no way out from the toxic air and a population that has now accepted the health crisis as everyday life.
Morning exercise in suffocation
The first runners showed up before he scratched. They warmed up and started running on the boulevard between India Gate and the Presidential Palace — two monuments that couldn’t see each other because of the smog.
A little further on, 72-year-old Dinesh Kamat was taking his usual morning walk. For seniors, winter — the season with the heaviest pollution — brings the same dilemma every year: stay home, depriving themselves of much-needed exercise, or go outside, sacrificing their lung health.
“I have to walk. There is no other way,” says Mr. Kamat.
“What we found was a city with no escape from severely toxic air, and a population resigned to a public health emergency as its everyday reality.” – The New York Times.
— Dr. Joy Karmakar (@Joy_Karmakar)
The “anti-cloud” cannons and allegations of manipulation
So-called “anti-smog guns” — devices that spray water and have been placed near government buildings and embassies — are located in various places, while many experts believe that the government is trying to mislead public opinion by temporarily reducing the readings of the monitoring stations.
The opposition even claims that during hours of maximum pollution, data from several stations “disappears”.
Schools in emergency status
At the entrance to DTEA High School PM2.5 readings were 20 times above the safe limit. Every year, the educational process is interrupted by sudden orders for online courses. Educators and parents are in constant confusion, in a city where pollution defines school life.
Hospitals full of patients with respiratory problems
Doctors at India’s top hospital AIIMS report a 30–40% increase in admissions of patients with respiratory problems.
“This is a public health emergency and should be treated accordingly,” says Pulmonology Department chief Dr. Anand Mohan.
At LNJP hospital, one of the city’s busiest, relatives of patients sleep on blankets in the courtyard, where PM2.5 levels were 17 times above the limit.
| Delhi: Visuals from the area around Delhi Airport this morning as a layer of toxic smog blankets the city.
AQI (Air Quality Index) around the area is 251, categorised as ‘Poor’, as claimed by CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board).
— ANI (@ANI)
The everyday life of employees in the cloud
Shailendra Chauhan, 49, an executive driver, was shaving at a makeshift barber’s stall when he spoke to reporters.
“Breathing is difficult, eyes sting,” he says. His boss recently installed an air cleaner in the car — perks he wonders how the wealthy enjoy in their homes. The barber, Mohammad Kalim, didn’t even know what an air purifier was.
“We have to go out to live our children. We can’t stay at home,” he says.
In the Old Town: one city, two realities
In the Chandni Chowk area, where traffic is restricted to bicycles and electric rickshaws, readings were “only” 10 times above the limit. But just a kilometer down, where the restrictions end, the pollution almost doubled.
Deepak Rawat, 31, who works at a tea stall at one of the busiest bus stations, works from 4am to 10pm for $5 to $6 a day.
“My eyes keep burning. Some days I get tired early,” he says trying to hold back his cough. His children, aged 6 and 8, get sick every winter.
“He can’t stand it here. Every year the same”, he adds despairingly.
