Gasping for breath

Diwali is only a trigger of a long-standing mess that is Delhi's air with other metros catching up on pollution levels

- SHUTAPA PAUL

Should Diwali be the time to discuss air pollution? Ideally not. While growing up, we didn't have to deliberate on air pollution. I remember crackers so loud that our entire house would reverberate. In Kolkata, achieving notorious status were the "chocolate bomb" and "dodoma." While the former would make you jump out of your skin, the latter would do it twice (it would explode once at ground level and then up in the sky). I hated them all - the deafening bombs, the unpredictable rockets. My only favorites were the "charka" and the humble sparkler, "phuljhuri" - all light, no sound, and little smoke. But the times have changed - Indian cities are bursting at the seams and its impact is being felt in the air and water.