Daily wage workers bear the brunt as Delhi’s pollution crisis drives them into hunger and debt
A thick grey haze engulfed the national capital on Tuesday, with AQI soaring to 488. Delhi's air quality plummeted to the ‘severe plus’ category on Sunday, prompting authorities to impose Stage IV measures under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) on Monday.
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As the year ends, the air quality in the national capital plummets to a severe plus category, enveloping the city in a thick haze. With the Air Quality Index reaching an alarming level, residents are forced to wear masks and install air purifiers. Many opt to stay indoors, avoiding even morning walks. However, for daily wage workers, staying indoors is not an option as they have to expose themselves in the open air throughout the day to earn and feed their families.
These workers are now worried that their children will starve due to the loss of livelihood.
Suman, a 45-year-old mother of two told PTI “If we sit at home, what will we eat? What will we feed our children?" She recently renewed her labour card with the hope of receiving government aid but she says it has been a futile exercise. “We don’t have government jobs where salaries come automatically. We survive on daily earnings, and without work, we have nothing,” she adds.
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