Delhites woke from bed to a new day coated with a thick smog as the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) plunged to the severe category of Delhi chokes city.
Air pollution in Delhi chokes and other neighboring cities is 30-35 times the permissible limit set by the WHO.
The winter season from October to January is particularly dangerous and inhale toxic air of Delhi chokes annually due to thin air and the increase in emission from vehicular density and burning of crop stumps.
They have warned people that this time around the condition is most likely to worsen in the next few days. On Wednesday morning, Delhi chokes was said to be one of the most polluted cities in the world by IQAir, a Swiss-based Air Quality Index (AQI) measurement organization, as several parts of the city recorded AQI 500+. speed, vehicular emissions and crop stubble burning.
This time, experts say that the condition is likely to get worse in the coming days.
According to IQAir, a Swiss-based Air Quality Index (AQI) monitoring group, pollution levels in several parts of Delhi chokes touched the 500 mark on Wednesday morning.
AQI tracks the portions of particulate matter which are also referred to as PM 2.5, in the environment. These particles are actually so small that they can get down into the lungs of the human body and cause many ailments.
Programs used for evaluating air quality use WHO guidelines, hence air with an AQI of 100 or less is considered fit to breathe while air with an AQI of 400-500 is considered to be severely polluted.
Other Greater Delhi chokes and satellite cities, NOIDA and GURGAON also recorded AQI levels that approached 500.
Many northern states have been grappling with toxic air quality and poor visibility over the last few weeks. Thus, flights to and from Delhi Chokes have been canceled or delayed because of problems with visibility. There have been reports of flights to and from Delhi being canceled or delayed due to low visibility.
It gets to the point where one can look at a satellite image and see it literally breathing out a thick layer of smog. Some days ago, NASA posted a satellite image showing the thick smog layer over some of the country’s northern regions and Pakistan. n experiencing toxic air and poor visibility over the past few weeks. There have been reports of flights to and from Delhi being canceled or delayed due to low visibility.
So thick is the smog that it is visible even from space. A few days ago, NASA shared satellite images of a blanket of smog engulfing parts of northern India and neighboring Pakistan.
People are equally falling sick due to what is being described as toxic air.
As per an online LocalCircles survey done from Delhi and nearby areas, 81% of families said that at least one member has had some health problem due to pollution in the past three weeks. Of all customers who completed the survey, more than one-third reported that they had bought cough syrup during the period in question.
Delhi government has formulated its Graded Response Action Plan but that has not helped it ease the pollution level as the city reports toxic equivalent.
Authorities have also called on people to restrict their movement as much as they possibly can and ensure they take public transport to keep car emissions down.
IQAir also reported that Delhi was the worst polluted capital city in the world in 2023.
India was also ranked the third most polluted country globally behind neighbours Bangladesh and Pakistan, according to IQAir.
Breathing is becoming a health issue in many cities in India due to increasing levels of pollution.
Sources note that the problem of great pollution contributed by industries has been exacerbated by the fast industrialization process and poor implementation of laws on environmental conservation.
India has undergone a lot of changes in the past few decades but the problem of indiscreet industrial control is that factories do not adhere to the norms of poll controls. Rapid construction is one of the main causes of increased pollution levels worldwide.