Beyond air purifiers & artificial rain
Delhi can’t keep blaming farmers while its rich class indulges in high-end consumption
ENOUGH has been said and written about the intensity of air pollution in the national capital. Time and again, we have been reminded of the damaging consequences of the toxic air we breathe. As a former AIIMS Director, Dr Randeep Guleria, has reminded us, air pollution is killing more people than Covid-19. In fact, to quote him, the long effects of air pollution go beyond coughs and breathlessness; it is also a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke and even cancer. Yet, it seems, we are not ready to raise fundamental questions and go deeper into the roots of this crisis. Instead, we love to remain content with temporal solutions suggested by the government. Buy air purifiers; use N95 masks while going out; and wait for the techno-miracle — cloud seeding and artificial rain! In fact, it requires courage and political/moral conviction to see beyond these sorts of privatised solutions to a public issue, interrogate ourselves and question the worldview or modes of living we have normalised.
