NEW DELHI: Hundreds of Delhi residents staged a rally on Tuesday, demanding immediate government action to address the worsening air quality in the Indian capital region, where pollution levels have reached extreme and hazardous levels.
Pollution in Delhi and the surrounding metropolitan area — home to about 30 million people — has been in the “very poor” category for weeks, with some areas reaching the “severe” category on Tuesday with an Air Quality Index score of at least 402, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board.
On the AQI scale from 0 to 500, good air quality is represented by levels below 50, while levels above 300 are dangerous.
“The current situation in Delhi is very dangerous … The pollution is constantly increasing and our government is doing nothing to prevent this,” Aditya Anand, a protest organizer from the Scientists for Society student organization, told Arab News.
Delhi was ranked as the most polluted city in the world on Tuesday afternoon by Swiss group IQAir, with a concentration of PM 2.5 that was 49.4 times higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended levels.
