It has the capacity to clean up, but not the political will
can point to victims. Twenty-year-old Annisa, for instance, has the face of a Bollywood starlet, but limbs so withered she cannot walk. Raj, 13, shrunken and largely paralysed, is carried by his father like a large doll. Another teenage boy, Shyamlal, sits alone on a doorstep. He suffers milder palsy; at least he can speak and does not drool.
Nor is pollution just an urban blight. Skies across the vast, intensively farmed Gangetic plain are dimmed by the same mix of diesel and coal fumes as Delhi. The sacred River Ganges itself is unfit for bathing or drinking along its whole 2,500km length. Intensive coal mining has ripped out forests and spewed black dust across a swathe of central India.
Too often, ill-conceived policies produce unintended toxic consequences. In a push for self-sufficiency, the government has encouraged farmers to grow rice. Water tables have duly plunged, prompting several states to oblige farmers to plant the thirsty crop later in the year, after the start of monsoon rains. This has pushed back harvests near Delhi to late October, when the wind drops. At the same time, new mechanical reapers leave more stubble.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Why Apple was so upset with Qualcomm — and why it finally had to give inApple buys modem chips from companies like Qualcomm to enable the iPhone to connect to cellular networks.
Read more »
Inflation could be a problem for India as surging oil prices and monsoon fears take holdThe risk of higher inflation could become a looming concern for India, experts say, as surging oil prices and monsoon fears come into play.
Read more »
India temporarily bans BJP state chief minister from campaign after anti-Muslim commentIndia's election commission on Monday banned a Hindu state chief minister f...
Read more »
India hopes to avoid US sanctions over Russian missile dealWashington is in a tricky position with India. It wants to bolster ties with the Asian giant to counter China's assertiveness, a trend which has also rattled New Delhi.
Read more »
Mahindra signs deal with Ford Motor to make midsize SUVs in IndiaAutomaker Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd signed a deal with Ford Motor Co's Indi...
Read more »
TikTok vanishes from Google, Apple app stores in India after banThe Chinese video app TikTok is no longer available in Google and Apple app stor...
Read more »
Apple's new long-term India strategy is a bid to win local consumersApple's largest iPhone manufacturer, Foxconn, confirmed that it will begin mass production of high-end iPhones in India this year.
Read more »
Video app TikTok's India download ban worries wider tech industryIndia's ban on downloading video app TikTok has heightened concerns over technology companies facing increased scrutiny and regulatory challenges in an important market by AdityaKalra Sankalp_sp
Read more »