India’s capital grapples with toxic winter air pollution
NEW DELHI — Even for a city considered one of the world’s most polluted, the Indian capital hit a new low this past week.
Air so dirty you can taste and smell it; a grey haze that makes a gentle stroll a serious health hazard.
According to one advocacy group, government data shows that the smog that enveloped New Delhi was the worst in the last 17 years. The concentration of PM2.5, tiny particulate pollution that can clog lungs, averaged close to 700 micrograms per cubic meter. That’s 12 times the government norm and a whopping 70 times the WHO standards.
The Delhi winter, once a glorious time of clear — crisp days that meant holidays and weekends spent picnicking in its many public parks — is now a time of annual health woes.