Delhi residents protest against rising pollution, demand concrete plan

Over a hundred protesters, including students, activists and concerned residents, assembled at Jantar Mantar on Wednesday to press the State and Central governments to act on the worsening air quality in the national capital.

Calling for mass mobilisation, they demanded that the air pollution crisis be taken up in the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament. Holding banners that read, ‘Dear government, breathing shouldn’t be a premium plan’ and ‘No need to be generous, we can get our own cigarettes’, participants pressed for a clear, public plan detailing how authorities intend to address this “health emergency”.

Mass mobilisation

“I believe change can only occur through mass mobilisation. The farmers showed us that. That is why I am here in solidarity,” said 71-year-old Ritu Khanna, a former translator. She said India could draw lessons from cities such as Beijing, Mexico City, Los Angeles and London that have faced similar crises.

For more than a month, students, youth groups, environmentalists and residents have been protesting across Delhi and calling for stronger measures as air quality continues to worsen. A total of 23 protesters were arrested by the Delhi police in the previous protest held at India Gate on November 23.

Rishav Kumar, a second-year Political Science student at Jawaharlal Nehru University, said the fight is about survival in Delhi and beyond. “I come from Sitamarhi, Bihar, where large-scale land encroachment by the corporate sector is happening. I am fighting for my village’s right to breathe as well. What I am facing here today is what my village may face in a few years. It is interconnected; it isn’t an atomistic problem,” Mr. Kumar said.

‘Take serious action’

Abhishek Dutt, National Secretary of the Indian National Congress, said he joined the protest as a Delhiite and not as a political representative. “We all breathe the same poisonous air,” Mr. Dutt said. Praising the students’ “symbolic, systematic and democratic” protest, he urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond. “It has been 11 years of suffering due to misgovernance. Please take serious action,” he said.

For many, the crisis is deeply personal. “My home is choking. We can’t breathe. We can’t see. We might die ten years younger. We just want to breathe,” said 27-year-old Abhilasha S. Kotwal, managing partner at a communication firm.

At 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Delhi’s air quality index stood firmly in the ‘very poor’ category at 342. Delhi’s air quality has largely remained in the ‘very poor’ to ‘severe’ range since Deepavali. As per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) norms, an AQI between 301 and 400 is considered ‘very poor’ and 401 to 500 ‘severe’.

(With inputs from Anashwara R)