New Delhi: Each winter, New Delhi, home to more than 30 million people disappears beneath a blanket of acrid smog, a poisonous mix of crop-burning, factory fumes and traffic congestion.
Levels of PM2.5, cancer-causing microparticles small enough to enter the bloodstream, have surged to as much as 60 times the World Health Organization’s limits.
While most residents endure the haze, a small but growing number of affluent and health-conscious families are leaving Delhi altogether.
According to a report, published in Arab News, many are migrating to southern cities such as Bengaluru and Goa, where air pollution levels, though still high, remain far below Delhi’s. Parents cite chronic coughs, asthma and respiratory infections among children as key reasons for leaving.
Some report that symptoms vanish within weeks of relocation.
Why Delhi’s Air Is So Toxic
The capital’s pollution stems from a toxic combination of regional and urban factors. Farmers in Punjab and Haryana torch crop stubble after harvests, sending vast plumes of smoke drifting into Delhi.
The city’s enormous vehicle fleet and factory emissions add to the haze, while construction dust and winter weather trap pollutants close to the ground.
Despite repeated interventions — from partial driving bans to converting vehicles to cleaner fuels — air quality continues to deteriorate.
The government has promised cloud-seeding trials this year, but experts doubt such experimental measures will offset decades of unchecked industrial and agricultural pollution.
Those Left Behind Struggle to Breathe
For most Delhi residents, relocation is not an option. The city’s poorer workers, street vendors, construction laborers, rickshaw drivers face the highest exposure, working long hours outdoors without protection.
Wealthier families rely on costly air purifiers, sealed homes, and limited outdoor time for their children, but anxiety remains high.
According to The Lancet Planetary Health, air pollution caused an estimated 3.8 million deaths in India between 2009 and 2019.
The UN warns that children are particularly at risk, facing long-term respiratory illness and stunted development. Despite decades of court orders and pledges, Delhi’s residents continue to choke under a crisis that shows no sign of lifting.
