Environmentalists urge Sri Lankans to make use of masks in order to mitigate the effects of air pollution following reports of smog engulfing parts of India.

“There is nothing we can do to stop the air pollution,” the Chairperson of the Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) organisation Ravindranath Dabare, told The Daily Morning yesterday (19) following a question on what Sri Lankans can do to reduce the harmful effects of India’s air pollution. “However, we can take steps to mitigate the effects and hence we recommend wearing masks in order to reduce any effects of air pollution.”

Masks were previously recommended and mandatory when the country was suffering from the Covid-19 pandemic.

These comments follow reports by France24 on smog developing in the Indian Capital, New Delhi, as a result of stubble burning by farmers as well as air pollution by factories and vehicle emissions.

Dabare had previously claimed that air pollution from neighbouring countries such as India has contributed to changes in cloud formation and temperatures, leading to the effects of climate change in Sri Lanka. Further, Dabare claimed previously that these effects of global warming have contributed to intense flooding in Sri Lanka.

The smog in New Delhi is reported to exceed the daily air pollution limit set by the World Health Organisation by 60 times, causing premature deaths, health concerns and the switching to online classrooms as opposed to physical schooling in order to keep children safe. The Indian Government has warned children and the elderly, as well as those with heart or lung related health concerns, to remain indoors as much as possible.

The Daily Morning’s efforts to contact the Disaster Management Centre in this regard proved futile.