Should Delhi Even Remain Capital?’: Shashi Tharoor Slams Govt Over AQI ‘Nightmare’

Calls City ‘Uninhabitable’ and Questions Its Status as National Capital. Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday expressed grave concern over Delhi’s air quality, describing the city as “essentially uninhabitable” from November to January due to the severe pollution levels. He raised the question of whether Delhi should even remain the nation’s capital given the worsening environmental conditions.

In a post on X, Tharoor referred to data from the Swiss air quality company IQAir, which placed Delhi as the world’s most polluted city, ahead of Dhaka. He condemned the government for its inaction in the face of what he termed a “nightmare.”

“Delhi is officially the most polluted city in the world, 4x Hazardous levels and nearly five times as bad as the second most polluted city, Dhaka. It is unconscionable that our government has been witnessing this nightmare for years and does nothing about it,” Tharoor wrote.

Efforts to Tackle Pollution Met with Frustration

The Congress MP revealed that he had been organizing an Air Quality Round Table since 2015, which involved experts, stakeholders, and MPs, but he discontinued the initiative last year due to a lack of progress and apparent indifference from authorities.

“This city is essentially uninhabitable from November to January inclusive and barely livable the rest of the year. Should it even remain the nation’s capital?” Tharoor questioned.

Delhi’s Air Quality Crisis Continues

The air quality in Delhi and its surrounding regions remains dangerously high, with AQI levels consistently crossing the 500-mark (severe plus) as smog persists for the seventh consecutive day. As of Tuesday morning, stations in areas like Anand Vihar, Ashok Vihar, and Bawana reported hazardous levels, prompting the Delhi government to declare the situation a “medical emergency.”

With the ongoing pollution crisis, schools and colleges in Delhi-NCR have shifted to online classes to safeguard students’ health.

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