Ministry issues guidelines to keep pollution from making Covid-19 infections worse

In a bid to prevent high levels of air pollution from increasing the severity of Covid-19 infections, the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) released a set of guidelines and best practices to be adopted by state governments and citizens to control the spread of infections

In a bid to prevent high levels of air pollution from increasing the severity of Covid-19 infections, the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) released a set of guidelines and best practices to be adopted by state governments and citizens to control the spread of infections.

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RP Singh, secretary, MoEFCC, said Covid-19 is known to seriously impact human health, especially a person’s respiratory system. With Covid-19 cases rising again in several states, Singh said it was important to come up with guidelines to keep vulnerable sections of the population such as senior citizens and children safe.

“Creating awareness about air pollution sources, indoor as well as ambient, and associated health impacts in Covid-19 times has become crucial. Addressing the issue of air pollution will lead to a decline in morbidity and mortality, as well as a decline in respiratory related illnesses during the pandemic,” Singh said.

Listing in detail the link between high pollution levels and the severity of coronavirus infections, the guidelines said, “Poor air quality affects our lungs and other body organs. It increases the risk of chronic diseases such as COPD, asthma, pneumonia etc.”

It added, “Air pollution can exacerbate respiratory and circulatory diseases in patients and vulnerable populations, and can also increase the severity of development of more serious illnesses.”

The guidelines have been prepared by Suman Mor, associate professor and chairperson of the department of environment studies, Panjab University, and Ravindra Khaiwal, additional professor of environment health department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER.

This document will also be circulated among state governments and agencies so that the awareness message is disseminated to the public, ministry officials said.

In a list of things that citizens can do to control emissions indoors, the guidelines suggested keeping indoor plants, avoiding smoking in closed spaces, using cleaner fuels for cooking, avoiding use of mosquito coils, incense sticks and room freshners, and using micro fibre cloths for dusting furniture.

The document also reiterated that people need to ensure proper ventilation in homes and the city administration must ensure strict adherence to the graded response action plan (Grap)—a set of emergency measures to tackle air pollution.

Dr Vikas Maurya, head of the department of pulmonology at Fortis hospital, Shalimar Bagh, said that it extremely important that people adhere to all Covid prevention norms to prevent cases from rising further.

“Such guidelines are important because cases have started rising again in several states. We should take lessons from other countries, where the moment people and the governments let their guards down, another wave started. Vulnerable groups are still at risk and it is everyone’s duty to protect them,” Dr Maurya said.