It’s April in Delhi. Mornings are warm, the sun’s a little too bright, and people are already complaining about the summer ahead. But as you step outside, take a breath and ask yourself — does the air feel clean? Or are we just so used to it being bad that we’ve stopped noticing?
Because I don’t know about you, but sometimes it feels like we’ve all just… adjusted.
We Still Cough. We Just Don’t Complain.
There was a time when even a slight dip in air quality would be all over the news, group chats, and dinner table discussions. Now, the AQI can cross 400 and no one bats an eye. We go to college, hang out with friends, stop for roadside momos — all while breathing air we wouldn’t wish on our future kids.
I see little kids playing in dusty parks. Rickshaw pullers cycling through smoke. People coughing at bus stops without thinking twice. And students like me — walking to class with a headache, or feeling drained by noon — wondering if it’s just the heat or something more.
Spoiler: it’s the air too.
Spring Doesn’t Feel Like Spring Anymore
April should feel light. It used to. A break before the oven-like heat of May. But now even in spring, Delhi feels heavy. Not just in weather, but in air. You can’t even take a deep breath without noticing the weight of dust, fuel, and who-knows-what else sitting on your lungs.
And the sad part? Most of us have accepted this as “normal.”
What Are We Waiting For — Winter?
We always talk about pollution in winter. The smog, the Diwali smoke, the crop burning. But what about now? April’s supposed to be better. Yet here we are — rubbing our eyes, ignoring sore throats, carrying on like it’s fine.
But it’s not fine.
If we only care in winter, we’re missing the point. This isn’t seasonal anymore. It’s Delhi’s default.
We’re All Breathing the Same Air — But Not Equally
Let’s be real: not everyone gets to hide from this. Some people have purifiers, coolers, sealed windows. Others — the ones selling street food, cycling deliveries, sitting under flyovers — don’t even have clean water, let alone clean air.
And then there’s us — the students, the dreamers, the “we’ll manage somehow” generation — constantly in motion, mostly outdoors, breathing in things we never signed up for.
But What Can We Even Do, Right?
Honestly, we don’t need to save the world in one day. But we can stop pretending this is normal.
Talk about it more.
Share real stories — not just stats.
Call out indifference, even in our own circles.
Plant a balcony tree. Use public transport when we can.
And push for accountability, not just awareness.
Because numbness is not strength. It’s a slow surrender.
Delhi Deserves to Breathe. So Do We.
This city gives us so much — culture, chaos, memories. But clean air? That’s still a fight. And it won’t be won if we’re quiet.
So if your throat hurts today, or your head feels foggy, or your chest feels heavy — don’t brush it off. Feel it. Talk about it. Because until we stop accepting polluted air as just “part of life here,” nothing will change.
We deserve better. Let’s not be numb to it anymore.
