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![New Delhi was shrouded in thick sepia-toned air, November 5, 2016 [Xinhua]](http://thebricspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/135808168_14783438242041n.jpg)
New Delhi was shrouded in thick sepia-toned air, November 5, 2016 [Xinhua]
Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday called the city a “gas chamber”.
“Pollution has increased to an extent that outdoors in Delhi are resembling a gas chamber. Prima facie the biggest reason seems to be burning of stubble in agricultural fields in Haryana and Punjab in huge quantity,” Kejriwal told a press conference.
Around 1800 schools run by the three municipal corporations of Delhi remained shut on Saturday as the city was shrouded in thick sepia-toned air.
The Centre for Science and Environment on Thursday called it a health emergency and the worst smog in 17 years.
“Fireworks during Diwali marginally added to the pollution. But other things inside Delhi did not drastically change. So the smog is mainly due to smoke from farm fires,” Chief Minister Kejriwal said on Saturday referring to the Indian festival of Diwali earlier this month.
Peak level of respirable pollutants PM 2.5 and PM10 had also violated the safe limits by over 15 times at several places across the city. The prescribed standard of PM 2.5 is 60 micrograms per cubic metre, but it touched 955 in real-time during early morning hours.
TBP and Agencies
