In the last 24 hours, Delhi’s air quality crossed the line between pollution and public health catastrophe.
The air now contains enough fine particulate matter (PM2.5) to be equivalent to smoking 7 cigarettes per day, even if you have never touched a cigarette in your life.
Many people wonder: “How does pollution affect me so fast?”
I felt it personally — within hours of landing in Delhi, I experienced scalp irritation, dandruff, and hair fall. This is not random. This is chemistry and human physiology reacting to toxic exposure.
What exactly are PM2.5 and PM10?
These are microscopic particles produced from:
- vehicle emissions
- dust resuspension
- industrial combustion
- crop residue burning
- construction
- secondary aerosol formation in the atmosphere
PM2.5 is 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair.
It can enter the bloodstream, reach organs, and stay in the body for months.
Why does Delhi feel like this?
Right now, pollutant levels are so high that:
- the sun looks hazy
- visibility drops
- eyes burn
- breathing feels heavy
- hair and skin feel irritated
- children and elderly are coughing nonstop
These are not separate problems they are all caused by the same toxic mixture of:
- PM2.5
- nitrogen oxides
- ozone
- volatile organic compounds
- ammonia
- carbonaceous soot
Together, they create a chemical environment that attacks the human body.
The shocking statistic: 8 million deaths [ Former AIIMS Director, just spoke about this for a news channel]
According to the former Director of AIIMS, toxic air killed 8 million people in 2014 globally. Let that sink in.
We spent two years fighting COVID-19.
But air pollution quietly kills more people every single year, without lockdowns, without headlines, without urgency.
Air pollution is not a “Delhi problem”.
It is a national public health crisis.
How PM2.5 affects your body in real time
Here’s what happens in the first few hours:
- Scalp irritation → pollution particles clog follicles
- Hairfall → oxidative stress on hair roots
- Skin dryness → pollutants disrupt the lipid layer
- Throat discomfort → reactive gases inflame mucosa
- Fatigue → less oxygen exchange in the lungs
- Breathing difficulty → airway constriction
These are early signs. Long-term exposure increases:
- cardiovascular disease
- lung cancer
- stroke
- cognitive decline
- infertility
- pregnancy complications
This is not fear-mongering this is established environmental health science.
As a clean-tech founder, this is why the work matters
I work at the intersection of chemistry and environmental innovation, focusing on air pollution mitigation technologies through my startup Aathma Pranavaayu Pvt Ltd.
Every time I see Delhi’s air turning poisonous, it strengthens my resolve.
Because the truth is:
We cannot fight a 21st-century environmental crisis with old solutions.
We need:
- new materials
- catalytic systems
- urban air-cleaning innovations
- emission reduction technologies
- data-driven environmental planning
What we need is urgency.
If you’re in Delhi/NCR today, here’s what you can do:
Short-term protection:
- N95/KN95 masks (cloth masks do NOT filter PM2.5)
- indoor air purifiers
- avoid morning/evening outdoor exercise
- keep windows closed during peak smog hours
Long-term advocacy:
- support clean-tech solutions
- push for stricter emission policies
- demand scientific interventions
- encourage community-level action
The air you breathe is the foundation of your health.
Air pollution does not make noise. It does not announce itself. But it silently enters every organ of the human body.