'Old people like me are finding it difficult': Sonia Gandhi fans the pollution flame

New Delhi: Wearing high-grade masks, Opposition MPs on Thursday staged a protest outside Parliament House over the issue of air pollution in the national capital with top Congress leader Sonia Gandhi saying that it is the government's responsibility to do something as children are dying and elderly like her are suffering.

Carrying placards like 'Delhi Deserves to Breathe' and 'Make Polluters Pay, Not Citizens', the MPs raised slogans against the government accusing it of taking no steps to control air pollution and asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to stop making statements and take action.

If Opposition leaders made their sound heard outside Parliament, BJD's Sulata Deo raised the issue in Rajya Sabha during Zero Hour, as she took a dig at the ruling BJP saying the "chaar sau paar naara" (400+ slogan of BJP during Lok Sabha polls) did not materialise but the air pollution level in Delhi has now above 400 in Air Quality Index.

She said there is no need to cut trees for development, as she said lung- related diseases are increasing among children and others, as she pointed out to reports of increase in sale of medicines related to breathing problems.

"In Delhi-NCR, pollution is in dangerous zone. It is said if the AQI is below 50, it is fine. In Delhi it has crossed 400. The 'chaar sau paar' slogan was not successful (in elections) but it has (succeeded) in Delhi," she said.

Separately, Sonia told reporters, "it is the government's responsibility to do something as children are dying. Old people like me are also finding it very difficult." Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said she has been demanding a discussion in Parliament.

What one needs is concrete action on the issue, which is not political, she said. "The government should take concrete action, we are all with it," she said.

The opposition protests came a few day after the Union Health Ministry informed the Parliament that in three years between 2022 and 2024, the emergency departments of six central government hospitals in Delhi saw reporting of over 204,000 cases of respiratory illnesses, of which more than 20,000 needed hospital admission.

For Chennai and Mumbai, data for two years (2023 and 2024) show just around 3,000 cases in the emergency departments and less than 900 hospital admission.

On Wednesday also, MPs like Deepender Hooda wore mask inside Lok Sabha tried to raise the issue.