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‘Public Health Emergency’ declared in Delhi due to Hazardous Air

As Delhi and the National Capital Region saw a heavy decline in quality of air level, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) declared ‘public health emergency’ in the capital city and stated the quality of air as ‘very poor’. The IMA has strictly urged the schools to immediately stop all the outdoor activities so that children can be prevented from the hazardous air of Delhi.

‘Public Health Emergency’ declared, Airtel Delhi Half Marathon Canceled

In an interview to ANI, KK Aggarwal, the IMA president suggested that people must stop stepping out and schools must be shut for some time as the quality of Delhi air has become extremely hazardous.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia wrote, “Children are more prone to
harmful effects of air pollution as their lungs are still growing… Breathing polluted air can hamper the growth of their lungs leading to breathing problems later on in life.”

The Indian Medical Association has also made an appeal to Arvind Kejriwal to issue an advisory for all educational institutions in Delhi-NCR, which should be shared widely  through different media outlets such as radio, social media, and print.

Arvind Kejriwal reportedly asked Manish Sisodia to consider shutting down the schools for few days, CNN-News18 reported. The Airtel Delhi Half Marathon has also been canceled by Kejriwal Govt. which was scheduled to take place on 19 November.

“The air quality is particularly poor in the early morning when pollution is extremely high. This is also the time when the proposed Half Marathon is scheduled to start. The hazardous pollution levels may have disastrous health consequences, even for the healthy participants,” said the letter, according to the report in DNA.

According to the Air Quality Index , time spent outdoors should be restricted when the levels have crossed the 200 mark. The city’s air has witnessed a steep rise in the air pollutant level with Delhi’s average Air Quality Index (AQI) being 411 at 9 am on Tuesday morning, as per News18. According to reports, visibility dropped to 200 meter at 8.30 am.

In Noida, AQI was 430 at 9.30 am. Low visibility caused a massive slowness in the road traffic, with long traffic queues being witnessed on the Delhi-Noida-Delhi Flyway and Noida-Greater Noida expressway due to Foggy hazardous polluted air in Delhi and surrounding regions. More than 20 flights were delayed or affected due to runway closure and smog at Indira Gandhi International Airport as per ANI.

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