‘My Daughter Breathes This Air’: A Mother’s Anguish Amidst Delhi's Pollution Crisis
Hundreds of citizens, including students, activists, and concerned parents, gathered at India Gate on Sunday to voice their alarm over the capital's dangerously deteriorating air quality. The protest, however, was met with a strong response from the Delhi Police, leading to the detention of dozens of individuals who were subsequently released around midnight after being taken to multiple police stations on the city's outskirts.
Detentions and Allegations of Police High-Handedness
Among those detained was Abhigyan, the 25-year-old Delhi State Secretary of the All India Students’ Association. He stated that the protest was disallowed by the authorities, highlighting a broader issue where dissent is often disregarded in the capital. The detainees claimed they were transported to three separate police stations – in Narela, Bawana, and Surajpur.
Abhigyan further alleged that an FIR was filed against some protesters at the Bawana police station. "We tried asking officers what sections were made out against us, but they didn’t tell us… they were misbehaving with us," he claimed. Another detainee, Tanzeem from Jawaharlal Nehru University, mentioned that a few senior citizens were also initially detained but were allowed to leave the police bus en route.
A Mother’s Plea for Her Child’s Future
The protest was not just about statistics; it was filled with personal stories of despair. Purnima Raghunath, a 43-year-old documentary filmmaker, attended the demonstration with two 10-year-old children. She narrowly escaped being pushed into a police bus but expressed the helplessness felt by many residents.
"My daughter’s first breath was in this city, I don’t even want to imagine how her organs look due to pollution," she said, capturing the visceral fear of parents raising children in Delhi's toxic environment. "We’re all worrying about bringing up children in the city because we don’t have the choice to move out."
Raghunath also criticized the government's approach, accusing officials of living in "ivory towers" and failing to be transparent about the pollution crisis. She emphasized that tax-paying, law-abiding citizens are being treated like criminals for demanding their fundamental right to life and clean air.
Official Stance and the Road Ahead
Prior to the protest, the office of the Additional DCP, New Delhi, had issued a letter stating that the gathering at India Gate could not be permitted as Section 163 of the BNSS was in force in the entire New Delhi district area, except for Jantar Mantar.
Senior police officers justified the detentions by stating that the protestors had blocked Mansingh Road, causing traffic snarls. After requests to move were ignored, the police proceeded with detentions to clear the road.
The protest also highlighted the ongoing blame game surrounding pollution sources. Abhigyan pointed out that while farmers are often singled out, vehicular and industrial pollution remain primary contributors to the capital's bad air. Another protester, Ankit Kumar, a 19-year-old student from Gujarat, alleged that the government is trying to fudge data while officials enjoy clean air from purifiers in their offices, leaving the public to breathe the toxic atmosphere.
The events at India Gate underscore a growing public fury and a desperate demand for actionable, transparent solutions to a health crisis that millions of Delhi residents, like Purnima and her daughter, have no escape from.
