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Nearly 2,00,000 hospitalized as Thailand chokes with air pollution
- The public health ministry of Thailand informed that around 1.3 million people in the country are sick due to the rising levels of air pollution
The rising air pollution in Thailand has increased the pressure on health services as nearly 2,00,000 people were hospitalized in the past week. The capital of the country, Bangkok is the worst affected city of the country with air quality worsening due to vehicular pollution, industrial emissions, and smoke from agricultural burning.
The public health ministry of Thailand informed that around 1.3 million people in the country are sick due to the rising levels of air pollution and the government has urged children and pregnant women to stay indoors.
Around 50 districts in Bangkong have recorded unsafe levels of PM 2.5 particles. The particles are considered dangerous as they have the capability to enter the human blood stream and cause damage to our organs. The level of air pollution has breached all standards of the World Health Organisation, the health ministry added.
The northern city of Chiang Mai, which is an agricultural region is also one of the worst affected due to the incidents of stubble burning in the area.
The government has advised companies to offer Work From Home (WFH) to their employees and anyone venturing outside should wear the high-quality N95 anti-pollution mask.
To protect young children, the nurseries of the country had set up special "no dust rooms" with air purifiers and the administration has also established checkpoints on road to keep vehicular pollution in check.
The country had seen a similar sort of havoc in January-February when the air quality of the country plummeted. Apart from vehicular emissions and agricultural fires, the "stagnant weather conditions" also played a huge role in the rising level of air pollution.
"We have to intensify (efforts to tackle pollution) by encouraging people to work from home. For schools...they might have to avoid outdoor activities in order to prevent impacts on children's health," the department's director general had said in a news conference.
(With inputs from AFP)
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First Published:12 Mar 2023, 04:26 PM IST
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