As I started at 6.30 am, the sky outside my house in Gulmohar Park seemed much clear than yesterday. But as I started walking towards Green Park Metro… a little haze was visible. I decided to take an auto and go towards India Gate.
As I crossed AIIMS, from INA onwards the sky got all the more hazier, and my hopes for better air today were shattered. From Safdarjung onwards, the roads had 200-250 mtrs of visibility.
On reaching India Gate, I found fewer people walking and cycling… which is usually buzzing with the regular cyclists & morning joggers.
A cyclist I found on the road told me, “ The high levels of smog were causing heaviness while breathing.” He cycles regularly and didn’t want to break away from his morning routine.
Then I saw a policeman doing his stretches, undeterred by the poison around him. He said,“The pollution is almost the same when compared to Hyderabad.”
He informed that he visits the capital for two weeks every month and is used to the pollution by now.
Walking ahead, I found even the Rastrapati Bhawan shrouded in smog.
I decided to go to Lodhi Garden thereafter, which is a regular haunt of joggers and morning walkers. On being asked why they have risked to come outside, most of them told me that they didn't want to break away from their routine.
Yoga Instructor Rakesh Vats was seen with one of his student, who told me that the only way to cope with the pollution is through Yoga. He said, “It is only with the breathing techniques, that one can increase their lung capacity and find it easier to live in this polluted city.”
Gurugram looked equally choked on 8 November, with a thick blanket of smog engulfing NH-8 and nearby areas.
(Breathe In, Breathe Out: Are you finding it tough to breathe polluted air? Join hands with FIT to find #PollutionKaSolution. Send in your suggestions to fit@thequint.com or WhatsApp @+919999008335)
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