I just moved to Delhi, India from New York, USA, and I noticed something really different. As soon as I got out of the airport, I took a big breath. Something didn't feel right, and at that moment I looked at the sky. It was dark-grey; in New York it used to be light-blue. I was astonished after seeing this. I heard before that Delhi was polluted, but I didn't expect it to be that polluted! For the next few days, I researched about places in Delhi with high pollution, and one of the places was Anand Vihar. As of early January, the AQI was 421 in Anand Vihar. 

The AQI of Anand Vihar keeps on changing, so you can check it here.

The healthy AQI is supposed to be between 0 and 50; 421 is hazardous. This means it can give people diseases! High air pollution causes about 7.9 million people to die in the world every year including people in Anand Vihar, especially children and the elderly. Pollution can also lead to many more problems, like climate change, destruction of the ozone layer, and natural disasters. 

Climate Change: Climate Change occurs when greenhouse gases from the pollution enter the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide and methane gases. These greenhouse gases act like a blanket, trapping the sun's heat and warming the planet. Climate change has many bad effects that can happen in Anand Vihar, like severe heatwaves and urban flooding.

Destruction of The Ozone Layer: Destruction of the ozone layer occurs from gases like CFCs (Chlorofluorocarbons) and halons. These gases are used in refrigeration and air conditioning. These gases also float up to the stratosphere, where strong ultraviolet (UV) light breaks them apart, releasing chlorine atoms. One chlorine atom can destroy thousands of ozone molecules. This lets harmful UV radiation reach Earth.

Natural Disasters: Climate Change is caused by pollution and over 90% of natural disasters are caused by climate change. Here are a few natural disasters that are caused by climate change:

• Heatwaves
• Floods
• Cyclones
• Hurricanes
• Wildfires

After learning of how much pollution Anand Vihar has and what could be the dangerous effects, I decided to find a solution to this problem. I researched for a while and I found the solution: trees. Trees act like natural filters; they absorb greenhouse gases and produce oxygen. So if we plant more trees in Anand Vihar, there will be less pollution.

This is a perfect plan, but there is problem: Anand Vihar is cutting done more and more trees for infrastructure projects. Lately, there is an ongoing project in Anand Vihar called the Anand Vihar to Apsara Border Flyover project. This project will cut down 113 trees on the way of the flyover, and the construction will pollute even more! Deforestation is deadly, for trees and people, since it can cause natural disasters like landslides. If people keep on cutting trees in Anand Vihar and pollute, the place could be inhabitable.

It's the pollution in Anand Vihar today, but it could be affect the whole planet in the future, so sign this petition and share it with your friends, family, and people you know before it is too late. This will give awareness to people about Anand Vihar pollution levels and to plant trees there and around the world. Remember, more the trees, lower the damage Anand Vihar and the world will have from pollution, natural disasters, and climate change.