India’s Delhi wrestles with ‘hazardous’ air pollution, primary schools shut

NEW DELHI – The authorities in New Delhi have ordered primary schools to shut from Saturday, and told schools to stop outdoor activities for older children as

air in the world’s most polluted capital had become a severe risk to health

.

A filthy smog forms over the Indian capital every winter

as cold, heavy air traps construction dust, vehicle emissions and smoke from crop stubble burning in neighbouring states, causing a surge in respiratory illnesses among the city’s 20 million people.

As the air quality index (AQI) topped the 400-mark, putting most districts of the capital territory in the “severe” or “hazardous” category on Friday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal instructed the schools to take action and warned that more measures could be introduced to restrict the number of vehicles on the roads.

India’s federal pollution control board has banned the entry of diesel trucks carrying non-essential goods into the capital, while Delhi’s administration suspended most construction and demolition work in the region earlier this week.

Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai said 50 per cent of government employees would be told to work from home, and he urged private firms to take similar steps.

On Thursday, the local authority in Noida, a satellite city, ordered all schools to conduct online classes for pupils up to the eighth grade.

The decision to shut some schools came after

concerned

parents and environmentalists took to social media

, and residents complained of discomfort in breathing and irritation in the eyes, nose and throat.

Healthy people can also be affected, while those with existing health conditions are at greater risk when the AQI rises past 400, the federal government warned.

Data compiled by the Swiss group IQAir shows New Delhi has been the world’s most polluted capital for the past four years.

Google Trends data, meanwhile, shows a spike in searches for “air purifiers” in the past few days in the city, as residents look for ways to breathe cleaner air.

India’s National Human Rights Commission has asked the chief secretaries of the neighbouring states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi to provide details by Thursday on measures taken to combat the alarming pollution levels. REUTERS