Students show pollution scars Rise in number of kids seeking exemption from sports

By : Jhinuk Mazumdar For TT

In Pic : Masks are being worn by students with increase in pollution in winter. Picture: Shutterstock

Calcutta: Many schools have reported an increase in the number of students carrying inhalers and prescriptions advising exemption from outdoor activities this winter, when air pollution levels have spiked in proportion to the state administration's capacity for denial.

Requests to excuse children from drills, march past and other such activities in school cite respiratory distress, chronic dust allergies, watering eyes and cough as the red flags. A medical certificate or prescription invariably accompanies such a letter, making the case for exemption stronger.

About 30 students of The Heritage School backed out of the annual sports meet in winter for health reasons. The Park Street and Salt Lake campuses of Apeejay School reported 25 and 20 sports dropouts respectively. At South City International School, about 35 students excused themselves from the annual sports event last year. The next one is scheduled for March.

"Requests for boys to be excused from physical activities like march past or a game of football were unheard of even five years ago. Children are showing signs of greater susceptibility to allergies, cold, cough and breathing problems," said Terence Ireland, principal of St James' School.

Data from 16 manually-operated monitoring stations showed average air pollution in the second week of January to be more than 2.5 times the national limit. The average based on readings at six stations during the same period was thrice the limit.

PM 10 is a fine particulate that can enter the respiratory system and trigger a rash of diseases.

In schools, the impact of increasing air pollution on the health of students has become so pronounced that requests to be spared regular physical activity are not limited to winter. Some children wear pollution masks to school. "Nowadays, it is common for parents to give their children inhalers to carry in their bags," said Seema Sapru, principal of The Heritage School.

Reeta Chatterjee of Apeejay Schools said about 25 per cent of children in junior school either have asthma or are prone to respiratory distress. "Many parents mention this in the school diaries so that we know beforehand about the risks. We also have students complaining of breathlessness or claustrophobia, which wasn't so a few years ago."