No Safe Air For Schoolchildren

Childhood signifies a protected stage of life. Parents as well the state find it tough to protect children.

- Krishna Kumar

In mid-November, air in Delhi was so bad that the government decided to shut down all schools. It makes sense to keep children at home when the air outside is toxic.

Students, always

But were they really at home? No coaching institute declared it a holiday. How could they? In the world of coaching, not just every day, but every hour counts and is paid for. Pollution may be in the ‘severe’ category or ‘very poor’, it makes no difference to a business that starts at seven in the morning in most cities and towns. Batches of children get the best value for their parents’ investment in preparation for entrance exams of various kinds. This is a parallel system of education, or the underbelly of recognised schools. Only the latter were shut on Children’s Day by order of the government.

There was an obvious irony in that decision. The government is not in control of the various, well-known factors that cause air pollution. All major factors are directly linked to economic development and, therefore, business. Young voices are raised every now and then, protesting against air pollution.

In 2018, several protests were made when thousands of trees were being cut down for construction of new government flats to replace old ones. Similar protests tried to stop the demolition of the Hall of Nations in Pragati Maidan.