‘Recognise long-term repercussions of air pollution’

An excessive rise in stubble burning led the Delhi Air Quality Index to very poor, severe, and hazardous categories. The Daily Guardian spoke to the environment expert of PGIMER’s Environment Studies Department, Professor Dr. Ravinder Khaiwal, who has long experience in air quality and diseases associated with it.
We asked Dr Khaiwal how bad it could be for kids, pregnant women, and old people when we have an AQI touching 500.
Dr. Ravinder Khaiwal: If kids, pregnant women, and old people are in direct, continuous contact and are breathing in such air, then it affects their health badly, especially their lungs. It depends on how long one is exposed to such a polluted environment. The pollution monitoring agencies cited a huge jump in stubble burning in neighbouring states, especially Punjab, as the reason for the deterioration of air quality in the city.
Q: How long does one have to suffer this stubble-burning chaos?
Dr. Ravinder Khaiwal: The next ten days are crucial as the harvesting season will be at its peak and the situation may deteriorate further as less than 50% of the sown area in Punjab has been harvested, according to the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS).
Q: Why do you think where is the problem—with farmers, mechanisms, government?
Dr. Khaiwal: The real problem is in recognising the long-term repercussions of it. The government is doing its job, be it a central or state government. Haryana has many such farmers who are using stubble as fuel. In Punjab, farmers have the basic issue of not receiving financial benefits after the disposal of straw. But somehow every stakeholder is lagging in understanding the long-term side effects of it. There are lots of efforts by governments, NGOs, industries, progressive farmers, and academic or research organizations, but solutions need to be implemented at the ground level. Further, behaviour change also requires persistent efforts.
Q: The recent number of outdoor patients with asthma in Delhi has increased five times more than the previous month in AIIMS. In Punjab, too, patients are experiencing difficulty breathing. What is the solution if this situation persists for more than 15 days?
Dr. Ravinder Khaiwal: It’s better in this situation, which is going to get worse in the coming days, that asthma patients, co-morbid patients, kids, and old people shall stay indoors. The government does have a system in place when they have to declare a holiday or forced isolation at the most affected places. 
Interviewed by Taruni Gandhi, iTV Network.