A dense cloud of smog has enveloped the Indian city of Delhi and surrounding areas, sending the air quality index to hazardous highs, making it difficult for residents to breathe and disrupting public life.

So far, government officials have shut down schools, restricted the usage of polluting vehicles and paused construction activity.

“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.

  • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I saw the other day the pollution in their main cities is the equivalent to smoking 30 cigarettes a day…

    That’s 1.5 packs a day, every day

    Which is why I hate people defending their contributions to world wide pollution by saying “India does what’s best for India”. They’re poisoning their own citizens on top of melting the icecaps with participate pollution

    • Gigan@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      That’s a dumb argument anyway. Climate change is going to be bad for India long term.

      • Skua@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        Climate change is already bad for India. Between it already being a hot country that is being hit by worse heatwaves every year and retreating Himalayan snow and ice being the source of water for huge numbers of people, India is already being hit harder than almost anywhere else on Earth

        • pdxfed@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Bangladesh is mostly low-lying floodplain(even for floodplain) and may not exist in a few decades.