New Delhi elementary schools switch to online classes
At the hospital, patients with coughs and acute asthma are lined up.
Cars are driving on a smog-filled road in New Delhi, the capital of India, on the 13th (local time). EPAYonhap News
Smog so thick that you can’t even see an inch in front of you recently covered New Delhi, the capital of India. The government has taken measures such as ordering schools to close, but damage to residents continues.
According to the Times of India (TOI) and Reuters on the 14th (local time), Prime Minister Atishi of Delhi, which governs New Delhi, said that due to serious air pollution throughout the city, “All elementary schools in the district will be closed until further notice.” “We are switching to online classes,” he announced.
Previously, state authorities restricted the operation of diesel cargo trucks and banned non-essential construction activities. On major roads, mechanical cleaning was carried out by spraying dust suppressants. Residents were also advised to use public transportation and stop using coal and wood for heating.
In New Delhi, which has a population of over 33 million, severe air pollution continues to the extent that cloudy toxic smog has recently enveloped the entire city. At the hospital, patients were lined up complaining of coughing, acute asthma, and allergies. Reuters reported that the Taj Mahal, a representative cultural heritage site, is also hidden from view by smog.
Tourists are looking at the Taj Mahal, a cultural heritage hidden in smog, in Agra, India, on the 14th (local time). Reuters Yonhap News
According to IQAIR, a Swiss air quality analysis agency, the pollution index in New Delhi, India, fluctuated between 450 and 500 on this day. Air quality is considered good when this index does not exceed 100. Currently, New Delhi’s air quality is at the “hazardous” level, which can have fatal effects even on normally healthy people.
In some areas, the concentration of PM2.5 pollutants, which can enter the bloodstream through the lungs and cause cancer, exceeded 50 times the recommended daily limit set by the World Health Organization (WHO).
As smog made visibility difficult, 88% of flights departing from New Delhi and 54% of arriving flights were delayed the previous afternoon.
On the 4th (local time), New Delhi, the capital of India, was covered with thick smog, making the atmosphere hazy. Indian media ANI news video capture
Causes of air pollution include exhaust fumes from urban factories and traffic, smoke from local farmers’ farming activities, and gases from burning agricultural waste left over after harvest in nearby granaries. In addition, from mid-October to January, temperatures drop and there is little wind, so pollutants cannot escape from the city and remain there for a long time, worsening air pollution.
New Delhi’s air pollution is already among the highest in the world. It also has a serious impact on the health of residents. A study in the Lancet medical journal last July found that 7.2% of the city’s daily deaths were due to air pollution.
India’s Supreme Court last month ordered the central and local governments to take action, saying clean air is a fundamental right. Afterwards, New Delhi authorities took measures such as mobilizing water trucks to spray water, but the effect was not significant. In other regions, only temporary alternatives such as spraying water fog with small unmanned aerial vehicles are being developed.
On the 3rd (local time), hazy smog covered northern India and Pakistan. Provided by NASA
The smog covering the entire Indian region is so severe that it can be seen even in satellite photos. Looking at photos released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), whitish smog is spread across northern India and Pakistan. The Associated Press reported that in Pakistan, record air pollution has continued since October, with about 70,000 people being hospitalized every day due to respiratory diseases.
