Saurabh Bhasin, a corporate lawyer from Delhi, has a deep affection for the city where he was born, but over time, his love for the place transformed into fear, particularly due to the escalating air pollution. As Delhi’s winters became increasingly polluted, with smog thickening the skies and rendering the air hazardous, even ordinary activities like walking outside or playing with his child at home became risky.
This led Bhasin to file a petition in 2015, seeking a ban on firecrackers, a major contributor to seasonal pollution. Despite the Supreme Court issuing guidelines to regulate their use, air quality continued to worsen.
Bhasin’s personal struggle intensified in 2022 when his young daughter was diagnosed with asthma, an issue he attributes to the polluted air. This health scare prompted Bhasin and his family to move to Goa, seeking a cleaner environment, though he acknowledges that the move will not cure his daughter’s asthma.
For families like his, relocating is a drastic but necessary choice to protect their health, something not available to many in Delhi who cannot afford to leave or do not have the option to work elsewhere. Bhasin believes that staying in Delhi would have worsened his daughter’s condition, emphasizing the need for a more sustainable solution to the pollution crisis.
The air pollution in Delhi is so severe that it poses significant health risks, especially for vulnerable groups like children, the elderly, and people with underlying health conditions. The World Health Organization categorizes the air quality in Delhi as hazardous, particularly between October and January when pollution levels peak.
Rising Air Pollution Drives Delhi Families to Seek Safer Environments Amid Health FearsThe Indian health ministry has advised people to avoid outdoor physical activities when air quality is categorized as “severe,” but for many residents, these recommendations feel inadequate. Bhasin, like others, believes that more than temporary measures are needed to address the underlying causes of pollution in the city.
Rekha Mathur, another Delhi resident, has opted to temporarily relocate to Dehradun during the winter months to escape the harmful air quality. While her husband stays in Delhi for work, Mathur worries about the impact of pollution on her young child and the long-term sustainability of such an arrangement.
She fears that even smaller cities like Dehradun are now facing deteriorating air quality, which complicates her desire to return to Delhi. Despite decades of legal action and attempts to curb pollution in Delhi, including measures such as relocating industries and restricting vehicle emissions, air quality remains a persistent issue, and the city continues to be shrouded in smog every winter.
For many, like Sarita Devi, a migrant worker in Delhi, leaving the city is not an option. Devi, who wears clothes for a living, cannot afford to return to her hometown in Patna due to economic constraints, and even when she visits, she finds the air quality there just as poor. Delhi’s air pollution is a widespread problem affecting millions, especially in north Indian cities, where pollution is on the rise.
As authorities implement measures like halting construction and shutting down polluting industries, the results are often minimal. Journalists like Om Thanvi, who moved away from Delhi to Rajasthan, suggest that a viable solution to Delhi’s air pollution crisis requires treating it as a public health emergency, with long-term commitments to improving air quality rather than temporary fixes.