More children in hospital, schools closed while smog drowns Delhi Reuters

Sunil Kataria, Neha Arora and Mayank Bhardwaj

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – More children are in hospital with respiratory problems as pollution levels remain dangerous in New Delhi, doctors warned on Wednesday, and the government has shut down five power plants and extended school closures to try to contain the crisis.

The 20 millionth city was the most polluted capital in the world for the third year in a row in 2020, according to a Swiss IQAir group, and air quality has risen to dangerous levels this month and elsewhere in northern India https: // www. reuters.com/world/india/why-air-quality-has-deteriorated-sharply-indias-capital-2021-11-08.

On some cloudless mornings the sun struggles to break the smog, and the landmarks just a few hundred meters away are barely visible.

Hospitals are increasing the number of children https://www.reuters.com/world/india/respiratory-complaints-among-children-spike-delhi-pollution-worsens-2021-11-17 with short-term complaints between parents and doctors how long to raise health concerns.

The numbers have tripled in the last seven to 10 days, according to Arvind Bountra, head of pediatrics at Max Super Specialty Hospital.

“This is directly related to the high level of pollution that the cities of Delhi and NCR (NYSE 🙂 are seeing …,” Bountra said, referring to the National Capital Region, which includes satellite cities in Delhi.

Prolonged exposure to contaminants, including lead, can lead to more serious complications.

“There is some research that shows that the cognitive functions of the brain (among children) affect even these very small particles,” Bountra added.

For the most part, the Air Quality Index (AQI) has stayed above 451 on a 500 scale, indicating “very poor” and “serious” conditions, according to the federal Pollution Control Act, which also affects healthy people and seriously affects those with diseases. committee leadership.

AQI measures the PM2.5 concentration of poisonous particles in a cubic meter of air. The government promises a “safe” reading of PM2.5 of 60 micrograms per cubic meter of air within 24 hours.

STOP TRUCKS, STOP BUILDING

The Indian Supreme Court has complained that the government has failed to alleviate pollution for residents who suffer from toxic air almost every winter when temperatures and wind speeds drop and pollutants become trapped in thick smog.

The country’s high court has asked the Air Quality Management Commission, a committee under the federal Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Climate Change, to take measures to reduce pollution.

Following the court’s intervention, the Commission on Wednesday shut down five coal-fired power plants around New Delhi, banned trucks transporting non-essential goods and stopped building in the capital and its urban satellites.

The panel extended the closure of the schools indefinitely after the Delhi government ordered them to close for a week last Saturday.

At least half of government employees should work from home by Nov. 21, he added.

November usually increases pollution as the concentration of small airborne particles increases, in part because farmers burn crop residues before a new sowing season.

India’s efforts to reduce the incineration of crop waste, which is the main source of air pollution in winter, have been of little benefit, despite spending billions of rupees over the past four years.