Schools in Delhi-NCR Reopen Today as Air Quality Improves

As Delhi’s air quality remains ‘very poor’ with an average AQI of 321 on Tuesday, Environment Minister Gopal Rai has reopened primary schools in the city from today. Citing improvement in air quality in the last 2 days, he said, “There has been an improvement in air quality in the past two days."

"Yesterday and today, the AQI has fallen to around 350. In stubble burning counts as well, there’s a reduction, and wind direction has changed.” Apart from schools reopening, the govt has also revoked the work-from-home order for Delhi government staff as government offices reopen on Monday.

Rai clarified that the ban on private demolition and construction work will stay for now, however, the construction and demolition of railway stations, metro rail services, and other important services will continue.

GRAP stage 3 will remain invoked. The GRAP is an emergency reaction and action plan that was activated in order to stop scenarios where the air quality in the NCR would continue to deteriorate.

GRAP or Graded Response Action Plan stage 4 means that light motor vehicles powered by a fuel other than BS 6 diesel are permitted and entry for trucks is not prohibited. However, the currently in effect GRAP-3 prohibition on non-essential construction operations would remain in place.

Health risks due to air pollution:

According to a recent study, breathing in polluted air can cause hazardous particles to travel from the lungs to the brain via circulation, perhaps causing neurological damage and brain diseases. The results were reported in PNAS by an international team of experts from the University of Birmingham and Chinese research organizations.

EGFR gene changes brought on by fine particles are linked with NSCLC (Lung cancer). Living in a polluted environment or air puts everyone at significant risk of developing lung diseases, including lung cancer. 

People who work outdoors are especially at very high risk of developing aerosol/particulate matter-induced lung changes, including cancer. Other groups at higher risk for the disease include children, the elderly, people with lung and heart disease, and people with pre-existing conditions like diabetes that make people more prone to infection.