Photos: Schools shut as toxic smog engulfs India's capital

New Delhi: Schools were shut across India's capital on Friday as a noxious grey smog engulfed the megacity and its 30 million inhabitants. Smoke from farmers burning crop stubble, vehicle exhaust and factory emissions combine every winter to blanket Delhi in a choking haze.

Akshardham temple is covered in a thick layer of smog. | The public health crisis has persisted for decades and researchers have blamed the smog for hundreds of thousands of premature deaths across India. Levels of the most dangerous PM2.5 particles - so tiny they can enter the bloodstream - were on Friday almost 35 times the daily maximum recommended by the World Health Organization, according to monitoring firm IQAir.

"In light of the rising pollution levels, all govt and private primary schools in Delhi will remain closed for the next 2 days," chief minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Commuters travel on NH24 amid a thick layer of smog. | Visible smog is a burden for residents through much of the year but the problem peaks at the start of winter when tens of thousands of farmers across north India set fire to their fields to clear crop stubble from recently harvested rice paddies.

That practice is one of the key drivers of Delhi's annual smog problem, worsening the impact of vehicle and industrial emissions. It persists despite efforts to persuade farmers to use different clearing methods and threats of punitive action for those who defy burning bans.

A thick layer of smog engulfs the India Gate. | Eye-stinging and lung-burning smog peaks from October to February when colder air traps pollution, with residents advised to wear face masks outside at all times.

Authorities regularly announce different plans to reduce pollution, for example by halting construction work, but to little effect. India is hosting the Cricket World Cup and organisers have banned fireworks at matches in Mumbai and Delhi to avoid compounding hazardous air pollution levels.

Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are due to play in Delhi on Monday, with little likelihood of the air clearing for their match.

India captain Rohit Sharma told reporters Wednesday that the situation was "not ideal" for the tournament. "Everyone knows that," he said. "Looking at our future generation... it's quite important that they get to live without any fear."

Labourers work on railway tracks amid heavy smog conditions in Amritsar. | A Lancet study in 2020 attributed 1.67 million deaths to air pollution in India during the previous year, including almost 17,500 in the capital.

A thick layer of smog engulfs the Vijay Chowk area as the AQI level increases to severe, in New Delhi.

An anti-smog vehicle of MCD sprinkles water to settle down the dust on the haze-covered road as the quality of air goes down, in New Delhi.