The skies over the confluence of sacred rivers in northern India where millions of Hindu priests and pilgrims have come to wash away their sins for the Kumbh Mela festival, are thick with toxic dust.
On Jan 14, 2019, the fine particulate matter (PM2.5) measure in the city of Prayagraj exceeded 150, more than six times what the World Health Organisation considers safe, according to AQI India, an online air quality monitoring platform.
The Indian government has announced a five-year programme to cut air pollution by up to 30 percent from 2017 levels in the country's 102 worst-affected cities, including Prayagraj, host of this year's Kumbh.