On December 19, 2025, Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood revealed that tenders have been issued for procuring and installing air purifiers in 10,000 classrooms across government schools, with ambitions to extend coverage to all 38,000 classrooms eventually.
This first-phase initiative, funded through the state education budget, responds to severe air pollution where the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) recently hit 387 overall and soared to 442 in hotspots like Anand Vihar, endangering over 1.5 million students who spend long hours in poorly ventilated spaces.
Speaking at a press conference, Sood highlighted the AAP government’s shift towards “long-term administrative reforms and policy measures,” critiquing past short-term tactics like Odd-Even vehicle restrictions and allegedly manipulated pollution monitoring.
No immediate reactions from parents, opposition parties, or health experts have been reported, though it aligns with ongoing school disruptions from smog. The rollout begins promptly, prioritising high-pollution zones in east and trans-Yamuna areas.
Tenders Issued as Pollution Chokes Young Lungs
The scale of this effort underscores the urgency: Delhi’s more than 1,100 government schools serve hundreds of thousands of children, many from low-income families in densely polluted neighbourhoods where fine PM2.5 particles infiltrate classrooms, raising risks of respiratory illnesses, impaired cognitive development, and chronic conditions like asthma.
Recent medical data from city hospitals points to a 20-30% uptick in paediatric respiratory cases during winter peaks, with children under 14 being particularly vulnerable due to their developing lungs and higher breathing rates.
“We want our children to study smart and also breathe smart air. In the first phase, air purifiers will be installed in 10,000 classrooms. Tenders have been floated today itself,” Sood declared, positioning the move as a guided priority from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.
He contrasted it sharply with previous AAP-led efforts, accusing them of “optics-driven” campaigns that placed air quality monitors in less polluted spots to underreport severity, thus delaying real action.
This initiative promises HEPA-filter-equipped purifiers capable of scrubbing 99.97% of airborne pollutants, potentially creating safe indoor havens during the six-to-eight-hour school day and enabling uninterrupted learning even when outdoor AQI crosses 400″severe” levels that have historically triggered hybrid or online classes.
Winter Smog Legacy Fuels Bold Reforms
Delhi’s pollution woes trace back years, with winter inversions trapping emissions from stubble burning in neighbouring states, unchecked vehicle exhaust from 12 million-plus cars, industrial dust, and construction debris, creating a noxious blanket that blankets the city from October to February.
Incidents like the 2024-25 season’s school closures for weeks, mask mandates for minors, and emergency bans on non-essential activities have become annual rituals, disrupting education for the most disadvantaged.
Recent triggers include a sharp AQI spike post-Diwali fireworks and intensified farm fires, prompting National Green Tribunal (NGT) interventions demanding safer school environments and Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) audits that flagged inefficiencies in prior anti-pollution spends.
Sood’s plan builds directly on these, integrating advanced monitoring and maintenance protocols to ensure purifiers’ longevity, while hinting at broader ecosystem upgrades like green buffers around schools.
This phased approach starting with primary and secondary classrooms in pollution hotspots signals a departure from reactive measures, aiming for systemic resilience that could inspire other metros like Mumbai or Bengaluru facing similar air quality battles.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
At its core, this announcement embodies a profound commitment to safeguarding the future by prioritising the health of Delhi’s youngest citizens, those innocent voices silenced by coughs in smog-filled rooms, and it calls for empathy towards families already stretched thin by urban survival.
By investing in clean air as a fundamental right, rather than a luxury, the government fosters harmony between progress and planetary stewardship, encouraging dialogue that transcends political finger-pointing to unite communities in kindness-driven action.
The Logical Indian applauds this as a beacon for positive social change, urging schools, parents, and citizens to complement it with tree-planting drives, carpooling, and advocacy for regional farm solutions steps that weave coexistence into daily life.
