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☆ Indian capital resumes some activities despite hazardous air, river foam
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Kanjyik Ghosh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis Acquire Licensing RightsNEW DELHI, Nov 20 (Reuters) - India's capital Delhi re-opened schools and some building sites on Monday amid signs of receding air pollution, although it remained classified as hazardous, while a toxic foam besmirched stretches of the Yamuna river flowing through the city. The world's most polluted capital resumed its annual battle on pollution this month, despite government pledges to improve. Monday's air quality index (AQI) of 336 was down from Thursday's level of 509, but still "hazardous", Swiss group IQAir said. Delhi's air pollution gets worse in winter, when wind speeds drop and cooling air traps pollutants spewed by vehicles, industry and farmers burning agricultural waste in surrounding states to prepare for new planting. PM2.5 levels remained above 128 micrograms per cubic meter of air since Sunday in the National Capital Region, according to the federal pollution control board.

Persons: Anushree, IQAir, Ankit Srivastava, Gopal Rai, Kanjyik Ghosh, Shivam Patel, Clarence Fernandez, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, Delhi's, Vehicles, National Capital, World Health Organization, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, DELHI, Delhi, Mumbai

☆ Smoky skies in Indian capital on Diwali as revellers defy firecracker ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Neha Arora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Smoke plumes were visible across the sky as revellers let off firecrackers in the evening to mark the country's biggest festival. Every year government authorities or India's Supreme Court impose bans on firecrackers - but only rarely do those bans appear to be enforced. Globally, air pollution was the worst in India's eastern city of Kolkata, while Delhi was the fifth-most polluted, according to Swiss group IQAir. Doctors say the air quality is likely to worsen on Monday as smoke from firecrackers lingers in the air, potentially causing itchy eyes and irritation in the throat. Some Hindus resent the Diwali firecracker bans, which they see as an attempt to interfere with them observing their religious festivals.

Persons: Health Organization's, Deepak, Dr, Ram Manohar, Gopal Rai, Neha Arora, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Health, Ram Manohar Lohia, Delhi's, Thomson Locations: DELHI, New Delhi, Kolkata, Delhi, Swiss

☆ India's New Delhi to restrict use of vehicles to curb air pollution - minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People walk on 'Kartavya Path' amidst the morning smog as air pollution levels declined in New Delhi, India, November 6, 2023.REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis Acquire Licensing RightsNEW DELHI, Nov 6 (Reuters) - India's Delhi city will restrict use of vehicles for a week between Nov. 13 and 20 to curb air pollution, the local government's environment minister said on Monday, as air quality remained in the "severe" category despite mitigation efforts. The rule would allow vehicles with odd number plates to ply on odd dates and similarly vehicles with even registration numbers will be allowed on road on alternate days. Air quality was 'severe' for a third consecutive day in the city on Monday, according to the federal pollution control body, forcing the city government to extend the closure of primary schools until Nov. 10. "There is a possibility that air pollution will rise after the Diwali," Gopal Rai, Delhi's environment minister, said, referring to the Hindu festival on Nov. 12 during which firecrackers, which are banned, are often set on fire, worsening air pollution. Reporting by Shivam Patel; additional reporting by Amlan Chakraborty; editing by Sudipto GangulyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Anushree, Gopal Rai, Shivam Patel, Amlan Chakraborty, Sudipto Ganguly Organizations: REUTERS, Sri, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, DELHI, Delhi, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh

☆ India's toxic smog season shuts down schools, revives 'odd-even' vehicle limits
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"The situation arising out of air pollution in the City is extremely worrying," Delhi's Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena said in a Friday post on X, formerly Twitter. Good or satisfactory air quality corresponds to an index somewhere between zero and 100. The air quality index in Delhi on Monday was roughly 450, according to India's Central Pollution Control Board. Prolonged exposure to an air quality index above 300 can lead to respiratory illness and long-term health problems. According to the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, these crop-burning fires cause pollution to peak in Delhi from Nov. 1 to Nov. 15.

Persons: Vinai Kumar Saxena, Saxena, Gopal Rai Organizations: Pollution Control, Control, Aam Aadmi Party Locations: New Delhi, India, Delhi, City

☆ India’s capital renews firecracker ban to combat pollution
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Blassy Boben | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, Sept 11 (Reuters) - India's New Delhi has reimposed a ban on firecrackers ahead of the Diwali festival to curb air pollution in the winter, when air quality reaches hazardous levels, the capital city's environment minister said on Monday. "Manufacturing, storage, sale, online delivery and bursting of any type of firecrackers is completely prohibited in Delhi," Minister Gopal Rai said at a press conference, adding that police have been instructed to stop issuing licenses for fireworks. Firecrackers are a part of celebrations for the Hindu festival of Diwali, which falls in mid-November this year. The government said that the city reported its best air quality since 2015 last year, driven by measures including a push for greener vehicles. Reporting by Blassy Boben; Editing by Sharon SingletonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Gopal Rai, Blassy Boben, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Thomson Locations: DELHI, Delhi, New Delhi, India

☆ New Delhi’s air pollution leaves residents gasping for breath
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Gafira Qadir | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

By the first week of November, New Delhi’s air quality index was 472, high enough to affect healthy people while having a serious impact on those with existing conditions. In some areas of the city, the reading exceeded 800, according to the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, a regulatory body. Experts say exposure to low air quality levels increases the risk of respiratory infections, heart disease and lung cancer. In response to the poor air quality, Delhi officials ordered the closure of primary schools and reduced outdoor activities for older students from Nov. 4 to 9. A government vehicle sprinkles water to control air pollution in New Delhi last month.

☆ Pollution curbs lifted in Indian capital although air quality 'very poor'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Altaf HussainNEW DELHI, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Primary schools will reopen in India's capital New Delhi this week and curbs will be lifted on certain construction activities, authorities said on Monday, after pollution levels improved to the 'very poor' category from 'severe'. Residents in the capital have been waking up in recent weeks to hazy mornings with the sky a shade of grey. The air quality index in nearly all monitoring stations in the city was between 300 to 400 or in the "very poor" category on Monday, which experts say leads to respiratory illness on prolonged exposure. "Directions for work from home amended and offices functioning at full capacity from today," Delhi state environment minister Gopal Rai told reporters. Air quality could worsen later this week, however, the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research said on its website.

☆ New Delhi wrestles with 'hazardous' air pollution, primary schools shut
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Tanvi Mehta | Ian Ransom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW DELHI, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Authorities in New Delhi 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. The chart below shows the daily maximum PM 2.5 concentration at the U.S. Embassy New Delhi since 2015. Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai said going forward 50% of Delhi government employees would be told to work from home, and he urged private firms to take similar steps. School girls walk towards a school as they reopened after remaining closed for nearly 15 days due to a spike in air pollution, on a smoggy morning in New Delhi, India, November 29, 2021. According to data compiled by the Swiss group IQAir, New Delhi has been the world's most polluted capital for the past four years.

☆ Farm fires big culprit as Delhi air quality worsens
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, Nov 1 (Reuters) - The share of farm fires affecting Delhi's pollution has surged to more than 20% since the weekend, higher than the levels a year ago, government data showed on Tuesday as the Indian capital's air quality turned "severe" at many places. Delhi on Sunday suspended most construction and demolition activities, predicting a worsening of its air quality from Tuesday because of calmer winds and other meteorological conditions. Smoke from farm fires contributed to up to 26% of the tiny PM 2.5 lung-damaging pollutants in the city's air - the highest in the past two years during the period of mid-October to early November, according to data from the Ministry of Earth Science. Delhi's air quality index crossed the "severe" level of 400 at most of its monitoring stations on Tuesday as visibility dropped. "You don't need to add any filter on Instagram for Delhi sky photos.

☆ Diwali firecracker users face jail under New Delhi anti-pollution drive
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A woman and her son hold firecrackers during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, in Mumbai, India, November 4, 2021. REUTERS/Francis MacarenhasNEW DELHI, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Festival-goers who let off firecrackers in New Delhi during this year's Diwali face up to six months in jail, the city's environment minister said on Wednesday, under a broader ban introduced to help combat extreme winter pollution. Firecrackers have for generations been an integral part of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, which takes place next week throughout India. Those found storing and selling firecrackers would face fines of 5,000 rupees and up to three years in jail. Some Hindus see the Diwali firecracker ban as an attempt to interfere with observance of their religion.

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