On Nov. 9, residents gathered in front of India Gate in New Delhi, India to demand clean air and immediate action from authorities, as the city’s air quality slipped into the ‘severe’ category again.
“There were close to four hundred to five hundred people at India Gate,” said Saurav Das, a journalist and one of the protestors. “That showed how much popular support there is for clean air. The issue is intensely political, because the solutions have to come from the political regime.”
The demonstration followed a sharp deterioration in the capital’s air quality. On Oct. 21, the day after Diwali, residents woke to a heavy, choking haze as particulate pollution levels shot into the “hazardous” zone, turning familiar landmarks into greyish, ghostly silhouettes.
On Oct. 21, Swiss air quality firm IQAir recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 442 in New Delhi, making it the world’s most polluted major city. The city’s PM2.5 levels — referring to particles measuring 2.5 microns or less that can reach deep into the lungs — were over 59 times higher than what the World Health Organization considers safe.
IQAir attributed the immediate cause to the widespread use of fireworks during the festival of Diwali, which released a thick cloud of smoke and fine particles into the atmosphere. Simultaneously, meteorological conditions — calm winds of the upcoming winter and a shallow, cooling boundary layer — trapped these emissions close to the ground.
Apart from the use of fireworks during Diwali, there is a familiar mix of contributing factors: local emissions from traffic, construction, garbage burning and seasonal crop-residue fires in neighboring states, which send smoke into the National Capital Region. The combined effect produced a rapid, citywide deterioration in air quality.
Roughly 33 million people live in the Delhi area, where air pollution has been linked to significant health impacts. According to The Guardian, this pollution is estimated to be responsible for 10,000 premature deaths a year.
Ed Avol, professor of clinical medicine at the USC Keck School of Medicine and an expert in respiratory health and air pollution, said burning anything is “never one hundred percent efficient,” leaving some leftover contaminants in the air.
“It is these pieces of burnt materials floating in the air, of many different sizes, that poses a huge threat to the population,” Avol said, adding that PM2.5 can “get past many defensive mechanisms in our body.”
Once these particles reach the inside of the body, they can contaminate the bloodstream and increase the risk of serious respiratory diseases and heart problems, including dementia and Alzheimer’s, according to publications from the National Institutes of Health and Stanford University Institute for Economic Policy Research.
As of November 13, India’s Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) website showed Delhi’s AQI as 403. The CPCB considers an AQI of 0-50 as “good.”
This surge in pollution has sent residents running for masks and air purifiers, for those who can afford them. For many locals, this is hardly surprising. The city has witnessed rising levels of “smog” – a mix of smoke and fog – every year over the past decade.
In an interview with The Indian Express, former All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) doctor and pulmonologist Dr. Gopi Chand Khilnani warned people who have chronic lung or heart diseases to “get away from Delhi for six to eight weeks” if they are capable of relocating, explaining that many of his patients reported experiencing symptoms including sore throat, cough and tightness in the chest immediately after Diwali.
However, the smog is affecting more than just the lungs. Eye irritation, including frequent eye burning, itchiness and watering, as well as sore throat and general fatigue, have also become common.
Ashavari Bhattacharya, a resident of New Delhi for two years, complained of suffering from a sore throat since the Diwali celebrations. While the festival ended over two weeks ago, these symptoms and the environmental impacts still persist, she said.
“There is a strong smell in the air that I am breathing. It’s heavy, salty and poisonous,” Bhattacharya explained.
Sreelekshmi, a classical dancer from Delhi who performs under her first name, expressed concern that almost everyone is facing some health issue, making wearing masks and glasses essential now.
“My days start with cleaning my eyes with drinking water,” she said.
Despite this, some people do not take these precautions, even while experiencing symptoms like repeated coughing and itchy, watery eyes, she explained.
“A casual attitude towards this air pollution is also happening every year because there is no action taken. People just speak about it and go through it,” she added.
According to the Associated Press, authorities in New Delhi have implemented measures to tackle pollution, including “limits on construction activity and restrictions on diesel generators.” But environmentalists have claimed that long-term solutions focusing on cleaner energy and monitoring vehicle emission controls are needed to prevent this phenomenon, which has now become an annual crisis.
The Delhi government tried to limit loud, traditional firecrackers and promote “green crackers” that claim lower emissions. However, environmentalist Bhavreen Kandhari said that even though “green” fireworks reduce some pollutants, they still produce particulate matter and chemical byproducts. Additionally, enforcement was uneven and many residents purchased fireworks from neighboring areas where restrictions were not strict.
Dr. Mohan George, an air pollution expert from New Delhi’s Centre for Science and Environment, told Yahoo! News that the solution to Delhi’s pollution is right in front of us: cleaner fuels and better public transportation.
As a result of the heightened pollution, residents said schools and offices are being closed, shifting to online platforms, and people are being advised to remain indoors as most outdoor activities are being cancelled.
Some households are using air purifiers and trying to keep windows closed all day, which adds extra cost and inconvenience. The Economic Times reported a surge in travel bookings to other destinations as residents are seeking a short escape from the smog. While those with the means may relocate temporarily and install the best filters and masks, lower-income households may lack those options.
Residents said conditions usually get better during the month of February, once it rains heavily, before the onset of the spring season. Some short-term relief is expected when winds pick up pace, but the broader improvement depends on a sustained change in weather patterns and reductions in ongoing emissions.
Shahzadul Haque, a resident of South Delhi for over fifteen years, spoke between bouts of coughing as he described how breathing has become a daily struggle. He estimates that 70 to 80 percent of the population is experiencing symptoms resulting from the polluted conditions.
“You see gloomy days, hardly any sunlight reaching the ground,” Haque said. “And it’s going to be like this for the next few months.”