Militants in J&Kblast tower, BSNLnetwork crippledTerrorists blasted a BSNL mo-bile tower in Srinagar on Mon-day, prompting five of the gov-ernment-owned telecom firm’sfranchisees to shut down theirSIM recharge facilities acrossthe Valley. As a result, morethan 50% of the Valley is nowoff cellphone network. P 8

Govt may move ICJ in Kaliacase: In a complete U-turnfrom its position over Kargilmartyr Captain Saurabh Kalia,the Centre on Monday said itwas looking to move the In-ternational Court of Justice(ICJ) against Pakistan over theissue if it got the nod from theSupreme Court. P 8

Core sector contracts0.4% in April: The eight coresector industries — whichmake up 38% of the index of in-dustrial production — saw a0.4% fall in output in April, theworst monthly show in a dec-ade, as only coal and steel pro-duction went up. P 22

7.5% Q4 GDP growth maybe revised downward: Thehigh January-March GDPgrowth figure of 7.5%, whichelevated India to the positionof the world’s fastest growinglarge economy, may be short-lived as there is a high prob-ability of its downward revisionin about three months. P 21

Dhanoa takes over as newIAF vice-chief: Air MarshalBirender Singh Dhanoa, whoflew fighter missions duringthe Kargil conflict, took over asvice-chief of the IAF on Mon-day. He is tipped to succeed AirChief Marshal Arup Raha asIAF chief after the latter retiresin December 2016. P 8

Non-subsidized LPG, ATFprices up: Jet fuel price washiked by a steep 7.5% on Mon-day and rates of non-sub-sidized cooking gas (LPG) wentup by Rs 10.50 per 14.2kg cylin-der to Rs 626.50 in Delhi in stepwith global firming of rates.

Max 37°C (-4)/Min25.9°C (-2)Moonrise: — Tuesday6.56pm

Moonset: Wednesday — 5.58amSunrise: Wednesday — 5.25amSunset: Tuesday — 7.15pm Partly cloudy sky. Squall likely. Maximum& minimum temperatures on Tuesday willbe around 37°C & 25°C. Maximum humid-ity on Monday was 50% and min 32%.

NEWS DIGEST

BENNETT, COLEMAN & CO. LTD. | ESTABLISHED 1838 | NEW DELHI | TUESDAY, JUNE 2, 2015 PAGES 40 | CAPITAL | PRICE `̀4.50; `̀7.00 WITH ET OR `̀8.50 WITH NAVBHARAT TIMES

INCLUSIVE OF DELHI TIMES | TIMESOFINDIA.COM | EPAPER.TIMESOFINDIA.COM

WATLING HITS 120, BUT RAINDELAYS NZ’S PURSUIT OF AWIN AGAINST ENGLAND 23

‘NO VENGEANCE’, BUTK’TAKA WILL APPEALJAYA ACQUITTAL IN SC 14

NON-GANDHIS MAY AGAINBE AT CONGRESS HELM INFUTURE, PC TELLS TOI 15

Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com

Air pollution is theworld’s biggest envi-ronmental health risk,

causing at least one in eightdeaths around the globe, theWorld Health Organization(WHO) has said.

The assessment was reac-

hed at the first ever discus-sion on air pollution and itshealth impacts at WHO’sWorld Health Assembly,which concluded in Genevalast week. Delegates at the as-sembly adopted a resolutionto address the health impactsof air pollution.

The new estimation signif-icantly increases the threat

posed by air pollution and hasdire health implications forcountries such as India,where the pollution load ishigh and public health infras-tructure underdeveloped.

WHO had last year rankedDelhi as the most pollutedamong 1,600 cities across theworld — worse than Beijing— which had previously held

the dubious tag. WHO’s assessment points

to a huge surge in disease bur-den and deaths due to air pol-lution exposure. Deaths dueto air pollution, which in-clude outdoor as well as in-door pollution, have in-creased four-fold across theglobe over the past decade,the latest data shows.

While the total number ofdeaths due to air pollution ispegged at 8 million everyyear, China and India are byfar the worst affected coun-tries. Of the 8 million deathsglobally, 3.7 million are fromoutdoor or ambient air pollu-tion, the data shows.

‘Causes 1 In 8 DeathsGlobally’

WHO: Air pollution is world’stop environmental health risk

�Can cause cancer, P 2

FULL COVERAGE: P 2 & 18

Josy Joseph & Mohua Chatterjee

New Delhi: Invoking theauthority of the Speaker,the Lok Sabha secretariathas challenged an order is-sued by the AppointmentsCommittee of Cabinet(ACC) on a senior officer’sdeputation to the secretar-iat, terming the order “with-out basis” and demandingthat it be modified.

The unusual letter wassent by Lok Sabha secretarygeneral Anoop Mishra toCabinet secretary Ajit Ku-mar Seth after D K Bhallawas appointed secretary inthe LS secretariat.

The ACC, headed by thePM, recommended thatBhalla should continue inhis existing salary scale.However, the LS secretariatgave Bhalla, a joint secreta-ry rank officer, the salary ofa secretary to the centralgovernment. P 8

LS secretariattakes on

PM-led panelTIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: K V Chowdary,former chairman of CentralBoard of Direct Taxes(CBDT), and Vijai Sharma,the senior-most informationcommissioner, are tipped totake over as the central vigi-lance commissioner andchief information commis-sioner, respectively.

Chowdary and Sharmawere finalized as the choicesfor the two crucial positionsafter a meeting of the selec-tion committee headed byPrime Minister NarendraModi and comprising Unionministers Rajnath Singh,Arun Jaitley, JitendraSingh as well as Leader ofCongress in Lok Sabha Mal-likarjuna Kharge. Thenames will be announcedonce President PranabMukherjee ratfies them.

Next CVC maybreak IAS

stranglehold

�Black money SIT, P 9

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Prime MinisterNarendra Modi has warnedBJP members from spreadingcommunal hatred, acknowl-edging that provocative com-ments made by some of hisparty colleagues were “total-ly uncalled for” and declaringthat constitutional guaran-tees of religious freedom andnon-discrimination were“non-negotiable”.

Asked by the news agencyUNI about some BJP mem-bers spreading communal ha-tred, the PM said, “Some un-fortunate comments havebeen made, which were total-ly uncalled for. Our Constitu-tion guarantees religiousfreedom to every citizen andthat is not negotiable… anydiscrimination or violenceagainst any community will

not be tolerated. My positionis very clear: Sab ka saath, sabka vikas. We stand for all 1.25billion Indians regardless ofcaste or creed and we willwork for every one of them.”

�Govt embarassed, P 11

Religious freedom‘non-negotiable’,

PM warns hotheads

Sanjay Yadav TNN

Gurgaon: A 21-year-old wom-an has accused the driver ofan Uber cab of trying to kissher after she got off at her des-tination in Gurgaon on May30, landing the taxi-hailingcompany in a fresh controver-sy barely six months after thealleged rape of a passenger inDelhi led to the service beingbanned in the capital.

The driver was detained onMonday after an email com-plaint and charged with sex-ual harassment in an FIR filedat Sector 56 police station.

The woman, who lives inDelhi and is a professionaldancer, boarded the cab at Pa-cific Mall at 9pm for Gurgaonto attend a friend’s party. Thedriver, Vinod, allegedly triedto make small talk with herduring the journey, asking herabout her family, friends, etc.“At one point, he said ‘madam,aap bahut smart lag rahe ho(madam, you’re looking verysmart),” she told TOI on Mon-day. “But he didn’t misbehaveduring the journey,” she said.

When she got off at Suncity,Vinod alighted to help her takeher bags out of the boot. “He of-fered a handshake and kissedmy hand. Before I could recov-er from the shock, he pulled meand tried to kiss me again. Ipushed him away and ran to myfriend’s home,” she said.

Uber drivertries to kiss

passenger inGgn, detained

�Made small talk, P 6

Raj Shekhar & Gyan Prakash TNN

New Delhi/Patna: TheKejriwal government hasdecided to take on loan po-lice officers from Bihar forits Anti-Corruption Branch(ACB), in a major departurefrom the pattern where theanti-graft body drew itsstrength largely from theranks of Delhi Police.

Bihar Police recently re-lieved six officers — onedeputy superintendent ofpolice and five inspectorsand sub-inspectors — tojoin the ACB, which is at thecentre of a constitutionalfight between the Centreand Delhi government.Three officers — one in-spector and two sub-inspec-tors — have joined, thoughthey have not been assignedspecific responsibilities.

This followed a conver-sation between Delhi CMArvind Kejriwal and BiharCM Nitish Kumar in thecapital. Sources said morecops could follow.

The DSP taken “on

loan” from Bihar is SanjayBharti. He was posted inArwal district of Bihar be-fore being shortlisted for astint with the ACB.

The development comesamid an escalating fight be-tween the Centre and theKejriwal government. Thehome ministry last week is-sued a notification to stressthat ACB’s jurisdiction waslimited to employees ofDelhi government.

The Delhi governmentsources said the “unorth-dox” transfers were as perthe standing order of theGovernment of NationalCapital Territory of Delhi(GNCTD) which allows theACB to have a chunk of offi-cers from outside forces af-ter due documentation andpublicity of such deputa-tion being carried out.

Kejri govt hiresBihar cops to

fight corruptionOfficers LoanedAfter CM SpokeTo Nitish Kumar

➤ Bihar Police has loaned 1 DSP and 5 Inspectors and SIs to join ACB

➤ This followed a meetingbetween Arvind Kejriwal and Nitish Kumar in Delhi

➤ Move could trigger another fight with LG

FLASH POINT

�May lead to spat, P 4

Dipak.Dash@timesgroup.com

New Delhi: Any brand am-bassador or celebrity en-dorsing products or servic-es is liable for action if anadvertisement is found mis-leading, the government

said on Monday. It said ce-lebrities like Bollywoodstar Madhuri Dixit andPreity Zinta are legally re-sponsible if the advertise-ments for the popular Mag-gi noodles are found to be

misleading consumers.The Food Standards and

Safety Authority of IndiaAct says anyone who is a par-ty to a misleading ad or itspublication can be fined upto Rs 10 lakh. Proposedamendments to ConsumerProtection Act include a pro-vision to issue direction fordiscontinuation of such adsand reporting such viola-tions to police or any otherlaw enforcing agency forcriminal prosecution.

Maggi soup: Govt sayseven endorsers liable

�Case with FSSAI, P 13

FULL COVERAGE: P 13

HOLIDAYS UNDER THREAT

Students from all educa-tional institutions in

Maharashtra will be expect-ed to head to their schoolsand colleges on June 21 — aSunday — to mark Interna-tional Yoga Day, reports Vi-namrata Borwankar.

“Even if this June 21 is aSunday, a programme mustbe held in all schools... Fromthis day, teachers must tellchildren about the impor-tance of yoga. Students andteachers can take a compen-satory holiday for attendingschool on Sunday. The schooleducation department willissue a circular in this re-gard,” said education minis-ter Vinod Tawde. P 8

Yoga Day inMaha schoolson a Sunday

With Rahul Gandhi slug-ging it out in the hot

sun, Congress netas appearto be rethinking about leav-ing for cooler climes abroadto beat the heat, reports Sub-odh Ghildiyal.

May-June is when a sec-tion of Congress bosses em-bark on their annual foreignjaunts. This year, though, isproving tricky. Rahul is onoverdrive, touring states andaddressing rallies with hisnew-found aggression fo-cused on saffron mascot Mo-di. Few want to be seen to beenjoying life when Rahul istrying to put the party on themend after the debacle in theLok Sabha elections. P 12

Rahul drivegrounds Congnetas’ plans

K.ShriniwasRao@timesgroup.com

Mumbai: Collectively, they have over60,000 international runs between them.But their contribution to Indian cricketisn’t over yet.

Sachin Tendulkar, the undisputedgod of cricket to his legions of fans; Sou-rav Ganguly, an astute skipper whotaught India how to win overseas; andVVS Laxman, the elegant right-handerwho gave the mighty Australians a dec-ade-long nightmare — have accepted aninvitation by the Indian cricket board(BCCI) to join its ‘Cricket Advisory Com-mittee’ with immediate effect.

Their focus, once they’re formallybrought on board, will be to advise theBCCI on various progressive steps thatneed to be taken to help Indian crickettackle future challenges. P 23

Sachin, Sourav, Laxmanto bat for Indian cricket

WEATHER

Marking a big change for acompany that for years

mandated that all its staffersshould come in formals fromMonday to Thursday, Infos-cions have been told they arefree to get rid of their formalsand can dress in turtlenecksand denims through the week,reports Shilpa Phadnis. Thishas been a “persistent requestfrom employees,” the VP (HR)said. That CEO Vishal Sikkawould want to change the ruleisn’t surprising since his ownfavourite attire is a black teeand jacket. P 21

Informal@Infy:Now, every

day is a Friday

THE TIMES OF INDIA, NEW DELHITUESDAY, JUNE 2, 20152 TIMES CITY

Delhi has 82 lakh vehicles, close to what Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata have altogether

AIR

WORLD’S DIRTIEST

Delhi had the highest concentration of PM2.5 particles among 1,600cities globally. These particles are so tiny that they can directly lodge in lungs. In 2013, Delhi’s PM2.5 average was 153 micrograms per cubic metre

IN WINTER, PM2.5 concentration rises to 10TIMES the safe standard on severe smog days

Summer concentrations of ozone (O3), a highly toxic gas, are often double the safe standard of 50 parts per billion.This year, ozone levels

were consistently high from May 19 to 27 in Delhi University (North Campus), Dheerpur and Aya Nagar with a peak of 120ppb at Dheerpur

82 lakhVEHICLES

Between October 2014 and February 2015, Delhi’s air quality was ‘poor’ and, at times, ‘very poor’ on 86% of the days

86% Days

US-based Health Effects Institute found that people within 500 metres of the roadside are the worst affected. About 55% of people in Delhi live within that range

Another study done by CNCI for Central Pollution Control Board found that every third child in Delhi has reduced or impaired lung function. The researchers examined 12,000 school children for the study

A study by Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute found that children in Delhi are vulnerable to pulmonary disorders, hypertension, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and depression because of exposure to air pollution

ONE TRIP ON CYCLE

ON A GREEN RIDE

Paris

(22

Lakh

)

Mexico City (88 Lakh)

Han

gzho

u (2

4 La

kh)

42%

21%

19%12%

6%

Public transport

Para Transit

Private Transport

Walk

4000

4300New York (83)

6000

Barcelona (16)80

00Lo

ndon

(81)

66,500Cycle

Sign InSubscribeonline or at any station

SelectSelect a cycle from any station

RideEnjoy your ride to your destination

ParkPark your cycle at any station

Can save a minimum of 110lts of fossil fuel per year for one person

Even if 5000 people take one cycle trip per day….. It can save burning of

5,50,000 LITERS/YEAR

DELHIMODAL SHARE

HOW WORLD CYCLES

CYCLE

9,30,750kg CO2 per year

CARBON SAVING

SYSTEM OPERATION

➤ Govt to provide land for construction of stations and give advertising rights to private agencies on cost-sharing basis ➤ Subsidized licence fees forvendors in station areas➤ Land-owning agencies to provide non-motorized transport lanes and related infrastructure

Figures in bracket is population in Lakh

23,900

HOW THE SYSTEM WILL BE IMPLEMENTED

Phase I in DwarkaCOVERAGE AREA: 30 sq km

180 stations with 2,500 cycles

100 km of shaded tracks

Cycle sharing system to have mobility card that can be used in Metro, cluster buses as well as shops

New Delhi: Lieutenant governor NajeebJung on Monday approved the cycling poli-cy for the city, emphasizing the need forlast-mile connectivity as well as environ-ment-friendly travel. Set to be implement-ed in Dwarka initially, the policy is aimedat decongesting Delhi, said Jung.

“Today, even for 1-2km we are forced touse motorbikes or cars and this adds to pol-lution and congestion on the road. There-fore, promotion of cycling and pedestrianinfrastructure is vital to reduce pollutionas well as congestion,” the LG added.

To start off, the bicycle sharing policywill enable implementation of 100km ofshaded cycle tracks and pedestrian walk-ways. It also includes 180 cycle stationsspread over a 30sq km area of Dwarka with2,500 cycles. Cycle stations will be placedclose to each other for easy accessibility.Those at Metro stations and important lo-cations will be larger, with over 40 cycles.

According to the LG’s office, the cycle

sharing system will have a mobility cardthat can be used in Delhi Metro and clusterbuses as well. It can also be used for shop-ping and other transactions. “The card willbe linked to an individual’s identity and bi-cycle use shall be monitored by an oper-ation control centre. DDA will hire consult-ants to design the stations and bring outprocurement and operations tender forequipment and operators through a trans-

parent process,” said a Delhi governmentofficial. DDA will run the service for thefirst three years.

As part of the policy, land owning agen-cies like PWD, DDA and MCD will providenon-motorized transport lanes and relatedinfrastructure. The safety and mobility ofcyclists and pedestrians will also be en-sured so that the city moves towards hav-ing safe cycling infrastructure on thestreets and at intersections, said the re-lease from the LG’s office.

The policy will incentivize participa-tion by private sector to promote cyclesharing and renting, added the release. “Itwas felt that if cycle sharing is to be pro-moted across Delhi, it cannot be done with-out financial burden or subsidy to oper-ators,” it said. As part of the policy, an“enabling environment” will be created byproviding land for stations, subsidizing thelicence fee on station areas, providing ad-vertising rights to private agencies on cost-sharing basis and also providing viabilitygap funding, said the release.

Vendors will have to adhere to serviceperformance standards setup by UnifiedTraffic & Transportation Infrastructure(planning & engineering) Centre of DDA.“This will ensure people find it easy to usethe system and ensure minimal waitingtime at cycle stations,” said the official.

DDA VC Balvinder Kumar said, “DDAshall run the system without expecting alot of revenue since we want to establish agood system that everyone likes using. Wehope it will benefit people in a big way.”

LG okays cycling policy, 100kmof tracks to be built in Dwarka

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

TACKLING POLLUTION

New Delhi: The air Beijingwas inhaling a couple of yearsago was as toxic as Delhi’s, butthe Chinese capital had man-aged the crisis quickly and ef-fectively. Experts say China’sstrategies were stringent andaggressive.

Beijing barred registra-tion of diesel cars as early as2003. It implemented China Vemission standards in 2013while India is still followingBS IV norms. They have afour-level alarm system to re-spond to severe air pollutionepisodes like shutting downindustries, reducing use ofprivate vehicles, closingschools depending on howbad the pollution levels are.

Not long ago, Beijing toowent through a similar phasewhen there was massive criti-cism from the internationalcommunity and expatriateshad started leaving the city toavoid exposure to the toxic air.Areport in Los Angeles Timespublished on June 20, 2014talks about how expatriatesstarted leaving because theirchildren could not haveenough physical activity out-doors or because they werefalling sick and it was becom-ing a huge economic concernfor China.

On March 21, 2014, BBC reported what prompted anAmerican couple to decide toleave the city after workingthere for five years. There aresimilar stories of expats flee-ing China during the worst air pollution episodes. ButChina’s response to the prob-

lem was swift.“China did go through a

similar phase when there wasinternational glare on Beij-ing’s air pollution. There weremedia reports that tourismwas getting affected. WhenHong Kong had high pollution

levels, even offices startedshifting out. But China man-aged to address it quite com-prehensively,” said a re-searcher who doesn’t wish tobe identified.

According to an analysisby Centre for Science and En-

vironment (CSE), during2011-14, over 1.4 million vehi-cles older than six years wereretired or replaced in Beijing.It also introduced an environ-mental labeling system—Yel-low: Euro I gasoline, Euro IIIdiesel; Green: Euro IV; Blue:

Euro V. This also includes useof electronic tags, and embed-ded chips in vehicles since2009 so that information aboutthe vehicle can be stored andremote reading can be taken.

Vehicles without labelsare illegal on Beijing’s roads.It helps them identify, whichvehicles could be polluting.For example, traffic restric-tion on yellow label vehiclesbegan in 2003. China will elim-inate yellow label vehicles inkey regions by the end of 2015and from the entire countryby the end of 2017.

“India, unlike China,lacks a comprehensive cleanair plan. Here, we have an AQIthat does not take into accountthe dreadful emissions fromthe industrial sector and par-ticularly the coal-fired powerplants, which are responsiblefor more than 50% of the par-ticulate matter emissions inthe country. This is simply un-acceptable. India needs toadopt a national clean air plansimilar to that of China,” saidAishwarya Madineni, cam-paigner, Greenpeace.

China also has advancedin-use vehicle emission test-ing system. “They (China) in-troduced 20,000 buses, includ-ing CNG-run ones by 2008,Metro and light railway, im-posed restrictions based onodd and even number vehi-cles; stringent control onemissions from industry, pow-er plants, etc,” CSE’s assess-ment said. About 20,000-30,000polluting heavy duty trucksthat ply through Beijing fig-ure in “smoke blacklist” andare fined by authorities.

China fixed Beijing air with iron hand

CAPITALS IN CONTRAST

How Beijing’s alarm system works Triggers based on PM2.5 Levels

BLUE 1 day over 150 microgram per cubic metre

YELLOW 3 days over 150μg/m3 or one day over 250μg/m3

ORANGE 3 consecutive days alternating between over 150 & over 250μg/m3

RED 3 days over 250μg/m3

ACTIONS TO COMBAT IT

BLUE YELLOW ORANGE RED

➤ Children, elderly and people with respiratory or cardiovascular conditions warned

➤ Increase dust prevention at construction sites

➤ Reduced use of government vehicles

➤ Vulnerable groups told to stay inside

➤ Power plants and factories cut emissions

➤ Factories shut

➤ Schools stop exercise classes

➤ Everyone told to avoid exercise outside and wear masks

➤ Excavation and demolition work at construction sites stopped

➤ Schools and kindergartens closed

➤ Power plants cut emissions further

➤ Car use regulated based on licence plate number (odd/even number system)

POLICIES ON INDUSTRIAL EMISSIONS

Annual average of 60 microgram per cubic metre for PM2.5 by 2017

2030

Stringent action along withhealth advisory and 4-level alarm system

Yes

None

None

None

None

CNG for autos,buses

ACTION

Near-term target

Deadline to meet safe standard

Emergency action on high pollution days

National Action Plan

Policies on transport

Delhi: No standards for thermal power plants, emission standards allow 4-20 times higher emission from industries

Beijing: 5-year plans with emission reduction targets, stringent emission standards for power plants and industry

(Source: Greenpeace)

Limits on car registration, private car use, car emission standard in line with EU

Delhi Beijing

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Around 88% of prematuredeaths due to air pollution ex-posure occurred in low- andmiddle-income countries, andthe greatest number in thewestern Pacific and south-eastAsia regions.

Latest studies by WHO andother international agenciesshow that apart from develop-ment of respiratory diseases,exposure to air pollution leadsto severe risk of cardiovascu-lar diseases like strokes and is-chaemic heart disease. More-over, stronger links of airpollution and cancer have beenestablished in recent studies.

According to InternationalAgency for Research on Can-cer (IARC), outdoor air pollu-tion is carcinogenic to hu-mans. The agency, specializingin cancer research, has foundevidence that exposure to out-door air pollution causes lungcancer as well as there is asso-ciation with an increased riskof bladder cancer.

“Air pollution is alreadyknown to increase risks for awide range of diseases, such asrespiratory and heart diseas-es. Studies indicate that in re-cent years, exposure levelshave increased significantly insome parts of the world, partic-ularly in rapidly industrializ-ing countries with large pop-ulations,” IARC said.

The latest resolution,

passed during the 68th WorldHealth Assembly, called for allcountries to develop air quali-ty monitoring systems andhealth registries to improvesurveillance for all illnesses re-lated to air pollution. WHO al-so asked its member countriesto promote clean cooking,heating and lighting technolo-gies and fuels; and strengtheninternational transfer of ex-pertise, technologies and sci-entific data in the field of airpollution.

Experts say policies and in-vestments supporting cleanertransport, energy-efficienthousing, power generation, in-dustry and better municipalwaste management would re-duce key sources of urban out-door air pollution.

In rural areas, reducingoutdoor emissions from house-hold coal and biomass energysystems, agricultural waste in-cineration, forest fires and cer-tain agro-forestry activitiescan lead to a potential reduc-tion in air pollution.

The WHO assessment says,“Reducing outdoor air pollu-tion also reduces emissions ofCO2 (carbon dioxide) andshort-lived climate pollutantssuch as black carbon particlesand methane, thus contribut-ing to the near- and long-termmitigation of climate change.”

At its next assembly, WHOwill propose a roadmap for anenhanced global response bythe health sector that reducesthe adverse health effects of airpollution.

Bad air can crippleheart, cause cancer�Continued from P1

MANY PERILS

New Delhi: As the Centreand state governments inNCR dither on fixing airquality, the capital’s image istaking a beating and its resi-dents are paying the price ofbad air with their health. Af-ter TOI published a piece byGardiner Harris, South Asiacorrespondent of The NewYork Times, on his decisionto return tothe US due tothe harm Del-hi’s air hasdone to hiseight-year-oldson, Bram,many otherexpatriates inthe city also said they foundtheir quality of life “severelycompromised” here.

TOI got many responseson Monday, and most peoplecomplained that air pollu-tion had forced them to cutback on outdoor sports andactivities like jogging and cy-cling. Chris Carlisle, seniormanager with an automobilecompany in Okhla, said thathe wears a mask while cy-cling. “I cycle a lot but alwayswear a mask. The air qualitybothers me. I have noticedthat the air quality index

(AQI) in winter goes up to 10times the safe standard. Dur-ing Christmas last time, itwas 600. You can definitelyfeel it when it’s high and youhave to stay indoors.”

Like Harris, GenevieveChase and her husband havealso decided to move back tothe US after living in Delhifor three years. Her children,aged 10 and 12, have not devel-oped any chronic problem

but she is wa-ry of expos-ing them todirty air. “Wehave decidednot to elon-gate our staybecause ourkids are not as

active here compared withhow they are in places withcleaner air. As a public healthprofessional, I feel verystrongly about it.” She keepsher children indoors when-ever the air quality indexshoots up.

Harris writes in his piecethat he had considered mov-ing back after his son’s firsthospitalization for asthma inDelhi but was pushed to askfor a change of location whenhis inhaler became ineffec-tive. “It was a tough decisionbut I told my bosses that I will

have to move back. My stinthere was the best job I everhad. My sons have their bestfriends here but we askedourselves, what are we do-ing? Lung problem is an in-visible disease but it can’t beneglected,” Harris told TOI.

Some termed Harris’s re-marks an exaggeration. Va-nessa Asvin Koumar, aFrench student in Jawahar-

lal Nehru University, said,“Paris is also polluted. It’snormal for any big city toface such problems of urban-ization.”

But most comments re-flected anger and shock. “Igrew up in Delhi in the 1970sand 1980s. The air had startedto get bad then, but nothinglike it is now. What are we do-ing to ourselves? No regard

for anything except gettingrich,” said one.

Some blamed Harris forbringing his children to Del-hi: “I seriously doubt your ca-reer advancement was worththe impact on your son’shealth.” Another wrote: “Iwas born in India. Have livedhere in the US for most of mylife. As much as I want mytwo young children to know

their ‘motherland’, I will nev-er expose them to the healthrisks posed by living there.”

Indians also vented theiranger: “It seems that Modi’scatchy slogan ‘Swachh Bha-rat’ has not moved beyond hiswishful populist mind,”wrote one. However, somesaw a conspiracy behind Har-ris’s piece. Governmentsources said the West wantsto portray India as a majorcontributor of greenhousegases (GHG) before climatenegotiations.

But Harris said, “My sondidn’t get asthma from cli-mate change. Some 1.5 mil-lion Indians die annuallyfrom polluted air, not climatechange.”

Keshav Varma, who wasWorld Bank’s director foreast Asia from 1997 to 2009,said the Chinese governmenthad done a lot to clean upBeijing’s air. “Delhi is a gaschamber but most peopledon’t understand how pollu-tion is harming theirhealth,” Varma added.

Delhi’s air also figured inexpat group discussions.“There’s that permanent‘diesel’ smell in the air. And it(Delhi) does try and balanceit with some green areas butneeds so much more, and so

much more investment in theMetro and local electrictrains,” wrote a member in aBritish expat group discus-sion.

David Housego, formerjournalist who lives on the27th floor near the Noida Ex-pressway, said pollutionbothered him when he livedin Delhi. “I sympathize withanyone living in Delhi. In-deed, it’s the first thing youfeel, the traffic and the airpollution.”

Vivien Massot, a Frencheconomist who has been inDelhi for five years, said hecan feel the smog and pollu-tion in Delhi much more thanin Paris. “It’s very visible andyou can feel it too. But it hasnot made me sick yet. It couldbe because I am less exposedto the traffic fumes: my houseis only a few minutes awayfrom my office in Lajpat Na-gar.”

Experts said moving outisn’t an option. “We have torecognize that people have tolive here to demand theirright to good health. The gov-ernment has the duty to pro-tect all. Every third child inDelhi has impaired lungs,what other reason do we needto act against air pollution?”said Anumita Roychowdhu-ry, head of CSE’s Clean Aircampaign.

No concrete step has beentaken to counter Delhi’s airproblem so far. NationalGreen Tribunal proposedbanning diesel vehicles thatare more than 10 years old be-cause of high PM2.5 (fine, re-spirable particles) emissionsbut the Centre filed an appli-cation opposing it. NGT willgive its final judgment on apetition seeking policy ac-tion on the issue in July.

Some Are Getting Ready To Escape, Others Want To Fix It, But Both Expats And Indians Agree That The City’s Air Is Terrible

INTREPID: Chris Carlisle braves traffic and toxic air on his bicycle in GK-1 on Monday

Rajesh Mehta

Feeling breathless in ‘gas chamber’ DelhiI’m not sure if I qualify to comment as an

‘expat’, having lived in Delhi for 30 years. But the pollution has gotten worse, and it’s not just the foreigners, but everybody who’s noticed it. My wife (artist Olivia Fraser) is asthmatic and she feels that strongly. However, we don’t live in Delhi but on the outskirts on our farm in Mehrauli, but we’ve installed air purifiers there too, as have many of our friends, both Indian and expat. Winters, when that thick polluted fog descends, is the time when we feel it worse—WILLIAM DALRYMPLE

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Kolkata 55 Good

Mumbai 30 Good

Source: SAFAR@MoES-IITM-IMD (10 stations)

Delhi 201 Poor

Tomorrow 187 Moderate

Pune 62 Good

Tomorrow 64 Good

PM2.5AIR QUALITY INDEX

POLLUTION FRIGHT

YOU alone can stop Delhi’s future from going up in smoke

US Embassy data calculated as per Indian standards by SAFAR@MoES-IITM-IMD

Based on 1 Station Data Per City at 4pm

New Delhi: The NationalGreen Tribunal on Mondayissued notice to Delhi gov-ernment and others on aplea seeking directions to re-strain authorities fromchanging the land use of apark in south Delhi’s AasthaKunj to private use.

A bench headed by Jus-tice P Jyothimani sought re-plies from DDA and SouthCorporation by June 20. Thebench ordered that statusquo be maintained with re-spect to the public park anddirected DDA to producenecessary documents at thenext hearing. PTI

NGT notice togovt on park