As the Hindu festival, Diwali, is celebrated in Delhi, the Indian city is in extreme danger regarding air pollution. The morning after firecrackers were set off, the air exceeded the limit by 66 times and shrouded the city in thick, toxic fumes. The government monitors showed the density of the fine pollutants to be small enough to invade the human body and breach the blood-brain barrier. The World Health Organization’s safe limit for these pollutants is set at 25 but the pollutants in Delhi greatly exceed this number with 1,665. Health officials warn that the air can cause headaches, discomfort in the respiratory system, lung cancer, heart disease, cognitive decline and obesity in the long run. Despite attempts by the Indian Supreme Court to limit the use of firecrackers for the festival, major Indian cities still decide to deal with this feature of the festival and do not take into account what the consequences may be. Last year the court banned the firecrackers in Delhi to a two hour window, allowing only green lights to be set off which supposedly emit less pollution and noise. Firecrackers could still be heard going off the next morning by Indian residents who flouted the restrictions. I was shocked after reading and seeing the pictures of the smoke in the air presented in this article. Many residents excuse their actions by claiming the firecrackers are “traditions” and will always be set off despite the restrictions made. In addition to these firecrackers, India also has an issue of pollution from vehicles due over population in India. I feel that India has all odds against them due to its geography and the lack of wind that could be blowing the pollution away. Another issue that was shocking to me was the sports teams that have stopped training to stay home to breath the air in their air-purified homes or move their training out of the city. The residents of Delhi are in desperate need of dramatic change for its future generations and even their own health in the long run because the toxic fumes will be detrimental. I hope that India sets various extremely strict laws and regulations that will force the residents to cooperate because this issue is not something to take lightly.
