Delhi sees another day of ‘severe’ air pollution, Minister blames stubble burning in Haryana, UP

New Delhi: The national capital witnessed no respite from the toxic air it has been breathing for the past several days as the city woke up to an air quality index of 410 on Sunday (November 5), which falls under the ‘Severe’ category. The persistent air pollution has forced people to be choked and compelled them to stay indoors. The neighbouring national capital region has witnessed similar fate which has also continued to see an AQI in the ‘Severe’ category. Thick layer of haze engulfed the capital city as people woke up gasping for breath.

At 8 am this morning, Delhi’s ITO recorded an AQI at 412, IGI T3 at 484, Dwarka Sector 8 at 491, Najafgarh at 480, Nehru Nagar at 485, North Campus at 442, RK Puram at 494 and Shadipur at 492.

The air quality in neighbouring Ghaziabad (410), Gurugram (441), Noida (436), Greater Noida (467), and Faridabad (461) also reported hazardous air quality.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor", and 401 and 500 "severe".

The pollution has inflicted upon people health and breathing concerns regarding which the doctors have expressed their apprehension. 

What do experts say?

Speaking on the air pollution, Senior Lung specialist, Medanta Hospital Dr Arvind Kumar said that people of all age groups are affected by it including those who are unborn and are presently in their mother’s womb.

“All age groups are adversely affected by air pollution. You might wonder how an unborn child is affected because that child is not breathing. When the child's mother is breathing, the toxins go to her lungs; through the lungs, they go into the blood; and through the placenta, they reach the child, and the fetus, and cause damage... When the child is born, they start breathing the same air. Our air quality is around 450–500, which is equal to about 25–30 cigarettes in terms of damage to the body... They have all sorts of breathing problems,” the doctor explained.

He said that the chances of asthma increase due to air pollution especially those suffering from obesity.

“From head to toe, there's no organ in the body that escapes the ill effects of air pollution. There is now evidence to say that it causes obesity, it causes asthma. When there is obesity and exposure to air pollution both present, the chances of asthma become many times higher, as was shown by us, the Lung Care Foundation. In a study of 1,100 children in Delhi, we found that one out of three children is suffering from asthma, and when obesity was also present, this number went higher,” he said.

Can air purifiers help?

When asked if the air purifiers can be a solution at home, Dr Arvind said that they are a personal solution to a public problem.

“If you are asking whether air purifiers are the solution to air pollution, my answer is a big no. Air pollution is a public issue, and air purifiers are a personal solution... If the outside air's AQI is 500, then no air purifier can bring it to 15 or 20, and even if it does, then its filter will get wasteful soon. And you have to change it within one to two weeks. If you will not change, then its effectiveness will be less,” he said.

The air quality in Delhi-NCR dipped significantly due to a surge in stubble burning across neighbouring states Punjab and Haryana, besides which a gradual drop in temperatures, calm winds that trap pollution have also played a contributing factor.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, Delhi’s AQI witnessed a sharp spike by over 200 points between October 27 and November 3, and ended in a descent into the ‘severe plus’ category (above 450) on Friday. The air quality in the national capital remained in the ‘Severe’ category with an overall AQI of 416 on Saturday.

What did Delhi Environment Minister say?

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said that the government is looking to strictly prohibit the construction work while also banning the entry of vehicles into the capital.

"Our focus is to strictly prohibit the construction work and vehicles entering inside Delhi, causing pollution, implement ban on BS3 petrol & BS4 diesel vehicles, control garbage and biomass burning...People should use public transport instead of private vehicles...For the area around NCR, we requested Union Environment Minister yesterday that the rules of GRAP should be implemented strictly. Even, the orders that CAQM is giving, for diesel buses are not being followed. Our effort is to strictly implement these rules within Delhi and within NCR, in collaboration with the Central Government, since BJP is in power in UP and Haryana. We are trying to ensure that they also focus on implementing this..." he said.

He further blamed Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for Delhi's current situation and said that the smoke of stubble burning from these two states is reaching the national capital. He said that smoke from Punjab will reach Delhi "only if the wind blows" and asserted that there is no movement of wind presently.

"...Central government figures show that less stubble has been burnt in Punjab this year in comparison to last year. Punjab's stubble smoke does not have as much impact on Delhi as that of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. This is because there is no movement in the wind. Only if the wind blows, the smoke of Punjab will reach Delhi. Right now there is smoke all around Delhi. The smoke of stubble from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh is reaching Delhi," he said.

Delhi government on Sunday announced that the primary schools will remain closed till November 10 in view of the air pollution.

(With inputs from agencies)