Air Pollution: New Delhi Comes to a Halt as City Deals With Worsening Smog

Air pollution is one of the most dire problems the entire planet is facing at the moment. According to a recent research conducted by the WHO, air pollution and smog is rising at a very alarming rate in the world's most populated cities, including India.

In the study, as reported by The Guardian, cities in the Middle East, South East Asia and Western Pacific suffer from pollution levels five to 10 times above the organization's acceptable levels.

The results of the study is particularly concerning considering how by 2050, it is estimated that sixmillion people would die every year from the effects of air pollution. Nevertheless, there is no need to look far away in the future to recognize the damning effects of smog and dirty air.

Last Sunday, the government of India has declared the air pollution levels in New Delhi an "emergency situation." The smog is so severe that officials have announced school suspensions, halting of government projects and closing a coal power plant for 10 days in order to alleviate and solve the pollution problem, Yahoo reports.

New Delhi has charted an alarming PM2.5 that equates to 900 microorganisms per cubic meter last weekend. This number is more than 90 times higher than the WHO safe levels and is 15 times higher than what the Indian government considers safe.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced the suspension of classes last Sunday. Kejriwal told CNN that schools across New Delhi would be closed in the next three days. Kejriwal has since explained in the same report that the current smog situation can be attributed to the burning of crops by farmers located in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. He, however, was quick to admit that there are several factors that brought about the destructive pollution.