Will you still read this in June?

Many citizens get very angry every winter over air pollution. Others despair. But to what end, if anger dissipates and despair is short-lived?

Between 1800 and 2100 hours on November 7, Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) for particulate matter (PM) 2.5 averaged 161. By midnight, average AQI had reached 597; north Delhi marked 1,009. Delhi celebrated Diwali with firecrackers with much gusto. The irony was lost on many who wore pollution masks while at it. Was this mass uncivil disobedience? Was this fatalism, a collective resignation to poor air quality? Was it apathy? 

Although a year-round hazard, air pollution peaks every winter in north India. In the National Capital Region (NCR), knives come out with timely precision. Citizens blame local authorities; the Delhi