Once again, the headlines tell a familiar, suffocating story. As the lights of Diwali fade, a grey, poisonous shroud descends upon Delhi, with news outlets declaring a ‘Red zone’ alert as the city chokes on post-Diwali smog. Visibility drops, and the Air Quality Index (AQI) plunges into the ‘very poor’ category. It’s a predictable, annual tragedy that we seem to accept as the cost of celebration.
This isn't a new crisis; it's a recurring nightmare. It brings to mind a post I wrote years ago, back in 2019, where I was simply trying to organize my digital thoughts. In a blog titled 'Simplifying Search,' I cataloged the keywords I had written about most frequently. Even then, 'Pollution' was a topic I had addressed in over 100 different posts.
Reflecting on it today, I feel a sense of validation mixed with profound frustration. The ideas and warnings have been circulating for years, not just from me but from countless experts and activists. Yet, we remain stuck in this destructive loop. Seeing the same headlines year after year confirms how relevant and urgent those earlier discussions were, and how little progress we have truly made.
This is more than an environmental issue; it is a failure of collective will. We celebrate a festival of lights by creating a literal smokescreen that harms the most vulnerable—our children and the elderly. The problem isn't just the firecrackers; it's a systemic issue rooted in a lack of foresight, lax enforcement, and a societal reluctance to adapt our traditions for our own survival.
We possess the knowledge and the technology to mitigate this, but what we lack is the collective discipline. The question we must ask ourselves is not how to celebrate despite the pollution, but how we can redefine celebration to be in harmony with the air we all must breathe.
When will we finally decide that the health of our lungs is more sacred than the rituals that poison them?
Regards,
Hemen Parekh
Of course, if you wish, you can debate this topic with my Virtual Avatar at : hemenparekh.ai
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