India and Pakistan are fighting, but not with each other but with the poisonous winds. American space agency NASA has taken a picture from the satellite in which a thick sheet of poisonous smog has covered the entire North India from East Pakistan. Lahore is covered with a thick poisonous blanket to such an extent that it is not even visible. People are suffering, breathing is becoming difficult and staying alive is becoming difficult. The smell of burning is in the air, there is a sting in the eyes and a burning sensation in the throat.
This line from Janab Shahryar’s ghazal “Why is there a burning sensation in the chest like a storm in the eyes, why is every person in this city worried” may have a different context, but it is an accurate description of the situation today from Lahore to Delhi. .
Last week, Swiss organization IQAir had reported Lahore’s pollution index as 1,165. Schools there have been closed and work to earn a living has come to a halt.
The situation in Delhi worsened today. Felt the need to leave the city and go to a place with blue sky and clean air. On November 13, 13 days after Diwali, the morning in Delhi was bleak and dusty. As soon as I woke up in the morning, I felt the smell of burning petrol or diesel in my living room. The meters on the air purifiers were at red indicating dangerous levels. It was being reported through X that AQI has reached 1696 in Vasant Vihar, South Delhi. The smoky sky, the stale air, the smell of burning, the invisible flames, the sore throat, the fear of illness and early death – I started feeling depressed. Wednesday was the official start of ‘polluted season’ in Delhi.
Gone are the days when Delhi mornings were cool and refreshing. The afternoons were pleasant and the air was filled with the smell of leaves that had fallen from the trees. The bloody evenings brought with them the feeling of winter. We used to stroll in Lodhi Garden, sit on the terrace in the winter sun. I can say with full confidence that winter weather would be equally pleasant in Lahore also.
Now all that seems like a dream, a fantasy.
Those who can go outside Delhi are going. Those who have no other option, remain ill and confined to their homes for more days than they work. I believe that since the central and state governments have failed to find a solution to this seasonal pollution, they should make a law that the three months from November to January will be work from home and learn from home. If you do not know how to fight a war then at least you should provide safe shelter to your people.
As far as relations between India and Pakistan are concerned, since the weather is toxic for both the countries, there are talks of starting ‘smog diplomacy’ between the two countries. Pakistani Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, who blames India for the situation – caused by stubble burning by farmers in Indian Punjab – has said that “it is not possible to deal with this problem unless both the Punjabs take joint action.” ” India has not yet expressed any reaction on this.
I know that our relations with China are also ‘toxic’ to some extent, but considering the seriousness of the problem, we should learn some lessons from it on how to deal with this ‘pollution season’. The air of Beijing, which was called the city of poisonous air, is better today than before. While we are still terrorized, China achieved success because everyone, from the government to the people, played their role honestly in combating air pollution. Great emphasis was laid on reducing the use of coal and replacing it with gas and green energy. The government made buying electric cars easier than buying petrol cars. Coal-fired power plants were closed, the world’s largest natural gas-powered transportation system was established and began operating. Older commercial vehicles were ordered off the roads, stricter pollution standards were imposed, and an efficient metro service was introduced and its use was encouraged.
But here, half-baked plans are made, wrong policies are made and there is no coordination and cooperation with neighboring states. Whereas politics is done to its heart’s content, due to which everything gets disturbed. The result is that this historic metropolis is drowning in smoke and smog.
I think Pakistan will seek help from China and will get air purifying equipment from it. But India is a world teacher. And if he wants to keep the title of Vishwa Guru, then he will have to take seriously the ongoing war against air pollution. Before everything gets ruined. (Copy: Amrish Hardenia)