Delhi’s poor bear the brunt of air pollution

Rickshaw driver Sanjay can only afford a handkerchief to shield his face from the smog-filled streets of Delhi, even as many residents rush to buy protective masks to combat the toxic menace.

Better off inhabitants of the world’s most polluted capital are swarming sellers of face masks — costing more than the 300 rupees (Dh18.36; $5) that Sanjay earns in a day — and high-tech air purifiers that could easily cost his annual wage.

Rickshaw drivers, street vendors and tens of thousands of homeless families endure the full force of pollution that doctors warn can do irreparable damage to the heart, brain and lungs, especially in children.

Sanjay, who like many Indians goes by one name, spends his days waiting for passengers, breathing in the poisonous mist so thick that often he cannot see the other side of the road.

No mask

“I don’t have a mask. The masks are too expensive. I have a hankie,” he told AFP, bringing out a cotton square.

He knows however that putting the rag over his nose and mouth does next to nothing against the onslaught of fine particles — so small they bury deep in the lungs — that sear his eyes and throat.

“My eyes are fire,” he said, pulling back an eyelid to expose an irritated, bloodshot iris.

Labourer MK Sharma also cannot afford a smog mask. He thought the scarf wrapped around his face — a method favoured by motorcyclists and street workers — made things “a little better”, but he wasn’t sure. “It is better than nothing,” Sharma said hopefully.

Rupesh Kumar paid $4 for a cheap, poorly-fitted fabric mask. It was all he could afford. “I want to save myself from Delhi,” he said.