Primary Schools in Delhi Shut Down Amid Rising Pollution Levels

Due to escalating pollution levels, primary schools in India's capital, New Delhi, will remain closed until November 10, as announced by Delhi’s Education Minister, Atishi Marlena.

Marlena, in a post on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), stated, "With the ongoing rise in pollution levels, primary schools will remain closed till November 10," as reported by Reuters.

For grades six through twelve, the possibility of continuing lessons online has been mentioned. 

New Delhi tops the list of the world's most polluted cities, a list compiled by the Swiss group AQ Air that measures air quality levels.

On Sunday, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in New Delhi reached 471, placing the city in the "hazardous" category, followed by Lahore in Pakistan with a "very unhealthy" rating of 261.

The toxic air even forced the Sri Lankan cricket team to cancel its training on Saturday, in preparation for Monday's World Cup cricket match against Bangladesh in the heavily polluted Indian capital.

The AQI is considered good between zero to 50, but a range between 400 to 500 adversely affects healthy individuals and is dangerous for those already suffering from diseases.