Delhi government orders closure of schools for primary classes amid spike in pollution levels

New Delhi, Nov. 4 (PTI): Delhi government on Friday announced that primary schools in the national capital will remain shut from Saturday till further orders while outdoor activities will be curtailed for senior classes amid worsening air quality in the city.

While parents breathed a sigh of relief, several schools and academicians expressed concern over learning losses due to the frequent closure of schools — earlier in view of the Covid pandemic and now because of deteriorating air quality.

“Primary classes will be closed from tomorrow and outdoor activities for classes above fifth standard will be suspended,” Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said at a press conference.

The city continued to reel under the eye-stinging pollution with air quality recorded in the “severe” category even on Friday.

Thick smog blanketed Delhi as the city’s air quality remained in the “severe” zone for the second consecutive day, primarily due to unfavourable meteorological conditions and raging farm fires in Punjab.

The overall air quality index (AQI) of Delhi stood at 445 at 2 pm.

An AQI of above 400 is considered “severe” which can affect healthy people and seriously impact those with existing illnesses.

Detailing the anti-pollution curbs in the national capital, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said schools will be asked to curtail outdoor activities of senior students.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) had recently asked the Delhi government to shut schools till the city’s air quality improves.

In the wake of severe pollution in the national capital, many schools have taken several measures to protect children, including suspension of outdoor activities and introduction of breathing exercises in classes.

On Thursday, all schools in Noida and Greater Noida were asked to hold classes online for students up to class 8 till November 8 in view of increasing pollution in the National Capital Region, according to an official order.

The schools have also been told to hold classes for students of classes 9 to 12 online as far as possible, said the order.

After remaining closed since March 2020 due to the coronavirus-induced lockdowns, pre-primary, primary and middle schools opened in Delhi from November 1, 2021, but closed for all grades within two weeks from November 15 because of rising air pollution levels.

In 2021, Delhi also experienced its longest “air pollution closure”. When schools reopened for all grades on November 29, they were ordered shut again, citing air pollution.

They opened briefly for 10 days for classes 6 to 12, before they closed completely on December 29, 2021 because of the Omicron-driven coronavirus surge.

The schools partially opened for primary students in February this year, and fully offline for all students from April 1.

According to the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago’s Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) released in June, the residents of Delhi stand to lose 10 years of life expectancy due to poor air quality.

An analysis conducted by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) in 2021 showed people in the capital breathe the worst air between November 1 and November 15 when stubble burning peaks.

The share of stubble burning in Delhi’s PM2.5 pollution jumped to 34 per cent on Thursday, the highest this season so far, which experts said was the reason behind the thick layer of smog persisting over the Delhi-NCR.