https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/08/asia/new-york-air-quality-beijing-delhi-intl-hnk/index.htmlsample quote
Last year, six of the world’s 10 most polluted cities were in India, according to monitoring network IQAir. Researchers have estimated that bad air could be reducing the life expectancy of hundreds of millions of Indians by as much as nine years; in 2019, air pollution is thought to have caused nearly 1.6 million deaths in the country.
The capital New Delhi is regularly shrouded in smog, thanks to several factors including vehicle emissions, coal-fired power plants, and the annual practice of burning agricultural fields to prepare land for its next crop.
That means its people are exposed to high levels of fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, a widely used indicator of harmful air pollution. The tiny pollutant is highly dangerous; when inhaled, it can travel deep into lung tissue and enter the bloodstream, and has been linked to health problems including asthma and heart disease.
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For years, residents in the Chinese capital breathed in acrid air every day. It culminated in the infamous 2013 “air-pocalypse,” when the air quality index hit 755, smashing what was supposed to be the top of the scale at 500, according to the US Embassy in Beijing that kept a daily air quality monitor. That historic high meant the air was beyond hazardous, forcing residents to shut themselves indoors, wear filtered face masks, and crank air purifiers on high.
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