Thick gray fog, a permanent burning smell, completely stale air that attacks the eyes, throat and lungs: the trap of extreme winter pollution has closed on the inhabitants of northern India and Pakistan. In the two neighboring regions, human health is threatened.
Sunday, November 17, became a nightmare in the Indian capital, New Delhi. The atmosphere continued to deteriorate throughout the day, reaching an air quality index of 1,500 around 8:30 p.m. on Monday the 18th, exceeding the threshold of 1,800. At this level, any prolonged outing outdoors is dangerous, as air quality is considered poor above an index of 50 and extremely poor above 300.
However, the streets were crowded and almost no residents were wearing protective masks, oblivious to the danger. “What do you want me to do?” That I stay home and stop feeding my family? »exclaims Rajesh, a street vendor momosa specialty of Himalayan ravioli, parked with his cart at the exit of Chhatarpur district.
The deterioration is partly due to the burning of stubble in the fields of Punjab, lit by farmers to remove residue from rice crops and move more quickly to the next seeds. Northwest winds carried the smoke over the capital, where the difference in temperatures between day and night created a kind of cover that prevented the pollutants from dissipating. On a clear day the atmosphere improves a little with the appearance of the sun, but on Sunday it remained hidden by fog.
The authorities, unable to put an end to these harmful agricultural practices, launched an emergency plan on Sunday: paralyzing the works and prohibiting the entry of trucks into the capital. Schools had already closed earlier in the week. Nobody expects a miracle.
The apathy of public authorities and the inability of the Supreme Court to force the authorities to act against pollution cause this scenario to be repeated every winter, with dramatic consequences for health: the latest study in the magazine the lancet, Published in 2021, it estimated the toll of pollution in India at 1.6 million deaths in 2019.
“Uncontrollable crisis”
The Indian government is stuck in denial, like the Health Minister who, in July, told Parliament that“there is no [avait] “There is no conclusive data available to establish a direct correlation between deaths and illnesses due solely to air pollution.”. “It is the standard government response to most public health problems: question data or estimates and list actions taken, whether air pollution, Covid-19 or malnutrition., complains Anand Krishnan, a doctor at Delhi’s largest public hospital.
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