Icantbreathe

In a bid to cut smog in the world's most polluted capital, Delhi government launched its ambitious odd-even car scheme on Friday.

New year resolutions

Ambient pollution is not a Delhi problem alone. The air quality index reports danger levels many times the health limit across North India. From the plains of Punjab to Bihar, that's roughly 400 million people.

Why is the reaction to practically everything that seems a bit difficult a resounding "No". Why don't we want to give things a chance even in cases designed to improve lives?

A pollution-free Delhi is a dream we all love, but when it comes to doing something about it, we all back out and find some excuse or the other to not restrict our daily luxuries which could cut down pollution levels and make the city better for all of us.

India's "poor" warning begins above an AQI of 200 and says breathing discomfort could be caused to most people on prolonged exposure. There is no separate warning for children. What stands out is that the US warning doesn't differentiate between healthy or unhealthy kids.

But who gives a damn about whether you and I are slowly being poisoned by diesel...Certainly not car manufacturers, and seemingly not our governments.

According to a database put together by the World Health Organization, Delhi is among the top 10 most polluted cities in the world, with sources of particulate pollution ranging from vehicle exhaust, industries, garbage burning, biomass and coal burning for cooking and heating, diesel generator sets, and re-suspended road dust.

In a bid to cut smog in the world's most polluted capital, Delhi government launched its ambitious odd-even car scheme on Friday.

New year resolutions

Ambient pollution is not a Delhi problem alone. The air quality index reports danger levels many times the health limit across North India. From the plains of Punjab to Bihar, that's roughly 400 million people.

Why is the reaction to practically everything that seems a bit difficult a resounding "No". Why don't we want to give things a chance even in cases designed to improve lives?

A pollution-free Delhi is a dream we all love, but when it comes to doing something about it, we all back out and find some excuse or the other to not restrict our daily luxuries which could cut down pollution levels and make the city better for all of us.

India's "poor" warning begins above an AQI of 200 and says breathing discomfort could be caused to most people on prolonged exposure. There is no separate warning for children. What stands out is that the US warning doesn't differentiate between healthy or unhealthy kids.

But who gives a damn about whether you and I are slowly being poisoned by diesel...Certainly not car manufacturers, and seemingly not our governments.

According to a database put together by the World Health Organization, Delhi is among the top 10 most polluted cities in the world, with sources of particulate pollution ranging from vehicle exhaust, industries, garbage burning, biomass and coal burning for cooking and heating, diesel generator sets, and re-suspended road dust.