Page 6 - The Indian EYE 121225

EYE ON INDIA DECEMBER 12, 2025 | The Indian Eye 6

DELHI CHOKES AGAIN:

Doctors Warn of a National Health

Emergency as Pollution Crisis Deepens

As toxic smog blankets Delhi-NCR and northern India, Padma awardee doctors, opposition
leaders, and government agencies sound the alarm over a spiralling public health crisis that

experts say demands urgent nationwide action.

OUR BUREAU (CRM), providing 50 percent financial
assistance to farmers for machinery
New Delhi
and 80 percent support to coopera-
elhi’s annual winter pollution tives and SHGs for setting up Custom
crisis has once again trig- Hiring Centres. A total of `4,090.84
Dgered national concern, with crore has been released to states for
air quality plummeting to hazardous CRM initiatives, resulting in more
levels across the National Capital Re- than 3.45 lakh crop residue machines
gion and several northern cities. Even and over 43,000 Custom Hiring Cen-
as a brief improvement pushed the tres across Punjab, Haryana, Uttar
overall AQI to around 300 on Thurs- Pradesh, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh.
day morning, doctors, legislators and The Centre has also backed pel-
environmental authorities warned letisation and torrefaction plants,
that India is in the middle of a severe promoted co-firing of biomass pel-
public health emergency that requires lets in power plants, and supported
immediate, coordinated intervention. waste-to-energy and biofuel projects
A group of more than 80 Padma under various ministries. According
awardee doctors issued a rare national to Singh, coordinated efforts in Pun-
health advisory, calling the pollution A view of mist sprayers installed by the Delhi government to combat air pollution jab and Haryana have led to a 90
levels “a significant public health emer- at ITO in New Delhi (ANI Photo) percent reduction in stubble burning
gency” affecting every age group. The incidents this year compared to 2022.
advisory emphasised that India is now “These initiatives address not
witnessing health impacts far beyond during severe pollution spells. and Vijay Vasanth moved notices de- only environmental pollution but also
seasonal respiratory issues. It warned Even as health concerns mount- manding that the government declare provide farmers with income oppor-
that toxic air is triggering severe asthma ed, political fault lines widened. Op- air pollution a national health emer- tunities and strengthen India’s energy
attacks, increasing the risk of heart at- position MPs staged a protest at Ma- gency. Tagore argued that the govern- security,” Singh told Parliament.
tacks and strokes, and affecting diabetes kar Dwar on Parliament premises on ment remained “paralysed,” relying Despite these claims, Delhi con-
and hypertension control. Long-term Thursday, wearing oxygen masks and on “advisories instead of action” and tinues to face severe smog conditions.
exposure, doctors cautioned, may cause holding banners that mocked Prime “committees instead of solutions.” Several neighbourhoods, including
irreversible lung damage in children. Minister Narendra Modi’s recent re- He called for a legally backed nation- Ghazipur and Akshardham, woke up
Clean air, the advisory stressed, is mark, “Mausam ka maza lijiye” (en- al clean air mission, strict liability for on Thursday to dense haze and re-
a basic human necessity. “Urgent col- joy the weather). The MPs demanded polluters, and emergency health pro- duced visibility. Many monitoring sta-
lective action is vital to protect public that Parliament hold a full-fledged tocols for exposed populations. tions recorded AQI levels in the “very
health,” the doctors stated, asking cit- discussion on air pollution, with sev- The government, however, point- poor” category, indicating dangerous
izens and policymakers to act swiftly. eral leaders accusing the government ed to significant measures already un- levels of particulate matter.
The medical community rec- of failing to treat the crisis with the se- derway. In a statement to the Rajya For residents, the crisis has become
ommended practical measures to riousness it deserves. Sabha, Minister of State for Environ- an annual ordeal. Schools have repeat-
reduce exposure: using air purifiers Congress President Mallikarjun ment Kirti Vardhan Singh outlined edly shifted to hybrid formats, emer-
where possible, wearing N95 masks Kharge and Congress Parliamentary extensive steps taken to curb one gency health advisories are now rou-
outdoors, avoiding strenuous out- Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi also of the major contributors to winter tine, and households across the region
door activity during peak pollution joined the demonstration. Congress pollution — paddy stubble burning. are increasingly investing in purifiers
hours, and keeping indoor environ- MP Pramod Tiwari described Del- Singh said air quality in the NCR is and masks as essential winter expenses.
ments clean through wet-mopping hi and other polluted cities as “gas affected by multiple factors, from As the winter session of Parlia-
and limiting sources of indoor smoke. chambers,” saying both the Centre vehicular and industrial emissions to ment continues, pressure is mounting
Vulnerable groups — including chil- and state governments were responsi- biomass and municipal waste burn- on the government to present a na-
dren, pregnant women, the elderly, ble for the situation. “People outside ing. Stubble burning, he said, is an tional, long-term, and legally enforce-
and people with chronic heart or lung cannot understand this… Citizens are episodic but important contributor. able strategy. For now, Delhi remains
disease — were advised to take extra being kept in gas chambers,” he said. Since 2018-19, the Centre has im- shrouded in toxic air, and the country
precautions, with recommendations In Parliament, Congress MPs plemented a Central Sector Scheme faces a clear reminder that the fight
to suspend outdoor school activities Manickam Tagore, Manish Tewari on Crop Residue Management for clean air is far from over.

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