Choked!

The Supreme Court had recently banned the sale of fire crackers this Diwali and many people had hailed it as an attack on the Hindu religion. Now that we have actually landed where we did not want to land, I would like to ask these learned friends of mine whether Hindus are able to breathe better than Muslims today or vice versa?

Delhi and Gurgaon are choked right now. Pollution is killing us, our family and our children. We are literally breathing in smoke but all our government can do is close school or change the school timings. For how long? And is the air in our homes any better? My heart especially goes out to people whose jobs keep them out of doors like policemen, security guards, gardeners, field executives, etc.

Again, burning paddy chaff is banned by the Supreme Court and again no one is following the order, much like Diwali crackers. Moreover, when it comes to farmers, the government turns a blind eye not willing to irk their vote bank. Someone told me that there are limited alternatives for the farmers and those that are, are really costly and beyond their purchasing power. Maybe he is right, but they are costly and unaffordable for the farmers but not for the country and the government; especially when millions of people are choking to a slow death. 

Let's face it, we are in a state of emergency. We really need extreme measures, both to tackle the problem right now facing us as well as a sustainable solution. My daughter and her class mates are doing a project around how to make Gurgaon a sustainable city. They have listed down some solutions and they will be handing it over to the concerned authorities. But is there even a willingness to implement these? What about us civilians? Do we understand our responsibilities? I see people cribbing about the air quality but I don't see people opting for car pools, shutting down air conditioners, planting trees, etc. To add on to it, everyone is now buying air purifiers which again run on electricity and essentially mean more carbon imprint. 

This is the image of NH8 (Delhi - Jaipur Expressway) on Wednesday at about 7 pm. You are supposed to be able to see a bright moon there, just slowly receding into a crescent shape; only if we would be able to see. The visibility is at a minimum, only a few meters. There is supposed to be a sign board here right in front of me. I can barely see the street lights. Thankfully, the marking on the sides signifying the corner of the road are visible although nothing beyond that is. This actually looks like a road to hell. Are we heading into our doom?

© Photo Nishtha Khurana, 2017. All Rights Reserved.