The sickening air pollution that led the Indian capital to shut schools and construction sites this week has prompted similar measures in nearby cities.
Officials in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh said Monday that they expect the acrid smog to blanket the state within days.
For more than a week, New Delhi’s skies have been filled with a thick haze that has made people’s eyes sting and their throats sore. Air pollution experts blame myriad pollution sources, from diesel-burning cars and seasonal crop burning to garbage fires and stoves fueled with kerosene and cow dung. Winter weather patterns also mean there is less wind to circulate the air.
On Monday, an Indian trade and industry lobby group warned that the pollution could have an economic impact, and released a study suggesting up to 10 percent of workers had called in sick during the last week.
“Environment and air pollution-related issues might hurt Brand India and hit sectors like tourism and outdoor recreation, as people tend to stay away from polluted areas,” said D.S. Rawat, secretary general of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of India.
Doctors urged people to avoid going outdoors unless they wear face masks.
“Higher air pollution levels may take days to settle,” said Dr. Surya Kant Tripathi, who heads the pulmonary medicine department at King George’s Medical University in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh.
Lucknow city director J.P. Gupta said the smog covering New Delhi was wafting over western parts of Uttar Pradesh and would soon cover the entire state, India’s most populous, with around 210 million people.

Source: Arab News