Harbhajan Singh raises anti-pollution SOS; urges state-Centre action

Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh on Monday took to Twitter to appeal to the Government of India to solve the increased pollution problems in North India. Singh spoke about the increase in pollution levels due to stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana and said that Chief Ministers Manohar Lal Khattar, Captain Amarinder Singh and Arvind Kejriwal should meet the Prime Minister and come up with a better solution to curb the pollution levels. He also said that if we continue to live in such conditions then our life expectancy is expected to reduce by 7-8 years and hence we need to find a solution soon. 

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"We are all a cause," says Harbhajan Singh

In the video posted by the Indian off-spinner on Twitter, Singh said, "I want to speak about the pollution in North India. We all are a cause for it, including me. We drive cars and burn fuel and cause harm to the environment. We have learnt over the last few years that fodder burning also causes a lot of pollution, which is harmful to humans. It is also known that our life expectancy will reduce by 7-8 years if we continue to live like this. Hence, we need to act." Singh further added, "I request all three Chief Ministers to meet PM Modi and keeping in mind the welfare of farmers as well as all individuals, to come up with a solution to tackle this pollution problem. I also wish that this meeting happens as soon as possible."

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Pollution levels to drop

Pollution levels in the national capital are expected to drop on Tuesday due to an increase in wind speed even as air quality remained in the 'very poor' category in the morning. According to the Meteorological (MeT) department, there is a possibility of strong winds in the next 24 hours. At 9.44 am, Delhi's air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 365. The AQI at Vivek Vihar, Anand Vihar and ITO were registered at 410, 395 and 382 respectively. On Monday, the city's average AQI stood at 370 at 8.30 pm due to a slight increase in wind. An AQI between 0-50 is considered 'good', 51-100 'satisfactory', 101-200 'moderate', 201-300 'poor', 301-400 'very poor' and 401-500 'severe'. An AQI above 500 falls in the 'severe plus' category.

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