Union Minister Nitin Gadkari recently shared his worries about Delhi’s high pollution levels, saying that it impacts his health and makes him think twice about visiting the city. At an event in New Delhi, Gadkari, who is a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party and represents Nagpur, expressed that the bad air quality is a major reason why many people choose to stay away from Delhi.
“I often wonder if I should come to Delhi,” Gadkari said in Hindi. “The pollution is really terrible.” He explained that the polluted air makes him sick, prompting him to practice yoga for two hours before arriving in the capital.
Along with discussing how India depends too much on fossil fuels, Gadkari suggested that the country should switch to alternative energy sources to tackle pollution. “By using alternative fuels, we can decrease our imports of fossil fuels,” he stated, noting that India spends a massive ₹22 lakh crore every year on imported fossil fuels.
Interestingly, Gadkari’s remarks came during a time when Delhi’s air quality had slightly improved, with an Air Quality Index (AQI) dropping to the “moderate” category of 165, down from 178 the previous day. In response to this change, the government also eased some pollution control measures.
Despite this improvement, many civil groups are still worried about the pollution crisis in Delhi. A petition was introduced in Parliament, urging members to address what activists called a serious environmental and public health emergency.
The petition highlighted that Delhi’s air quality has been rated as “poor” or “very poor” since September. It also pointed out the frightening statistics: air pollution causes 1.7 million deaths in India every year and can decrease life expectancy by about 3.57 years across the country and as much as 12 years in Delhi.
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