Delhi Reaches Record High Smog Levels

Delhi smog levels reached a record high of 17 years in early November, prompting the city to close over 5,000 schools and place a temporary ban on construction, demolition, and powerplant activity.

Following Diwali celebrations on October 30, the smog continued to persist for over a week. In some areas of Delhi, air pollution reached an air quality measurement of 999, exceeding the maximum of 500 on the Air Quality Index. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal compared the city to a gas chamber and attributed rising smog levels to the burning of crop stubble in the neighboring Punjab and Haryana regions. The state government ordered schools to be shut down for three days, a significant measure in mitigating the health impact of exposure to smog. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, almost 500,000 children under the age of five die from air pollution-induced pneumonia per year.

Both NASA and the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research agree with this claim, referencing the north-to-northwest wind patterns that bring pollutant smoke to Delhi. However, the Union Environment Minister, Anil Dave, and officials from the state of Punjab diametrically oppose this claim and argue that Delhi’s government is responsible for 80 percent of the smog. Dave claims that burning petrol, diesel, coal, and garbage at waste disposals is the cause of the unprecedented pollution.

These allegations lead to the question of how to proceed to mitigate the pollution and smog that is affecting over 25 million city residents. Scientists suggest commercializing straw to reduce and eventually eliminate the burning of paddy straw. India produces 140 million tons of paddy and 280 million tons of rice straw in a year. Mankombu Swaminathan, a noted agri-scientist, argues that transforming the stubble into animal feed would not only benefit the farmers, but also reduce overall pollution output. While the Indian government explores other methods of treating the issue, the United Nations claims that Delhi is a wake up call to the world. Given that air pollution has no borders, Delhi's deteriorating air quality should be considered a world problem that must be addressed.