Mother, a six-lettered-word that speaks volumes, is a blessing of god in a true sense. One of the ways in which a woman attains motherhood is when the seed of life is embedded in her body. Since then, she is in charge of the seed of life growing within her.
Motherhood is a natural process, where mothers are considered to be the caregivers by default. To nurture the life within her, she will go to any extent, to break all the barriers that act as a threat to her child(ren).
This is true for all the mothers, who leave no stone unturned to provide all the necessities to their children, for their growth and well-being. To turn her child into a healthy and responsible citizen the ultimate goal for many of them.
Irrespective of caste, religion, and nationality, most mothers share the trait of compassion—giving without expecting anything in return—and selfless love.
Air Pollution Is A Really Serious Problem
It is just a dream for mothers living in places prone to excessive pollution to provide a safe environment for new-born since clean air is a luxury in India. People from all sections of society are equally affected.
However, the most vulnerable are the mothers and the children because India is undergoing an ‘airpostrophic’ dilemma. As I type this, millions of children are gasping for clean air to breathe.
According to an analysis of the “global burden of disease (2017)”, every three minutes, a child dies due to inhalation of toxic pollutants in the air
We might not know this, but air pollution is a slow poison, catastrophic, apocalyptic.
To address the pertaining pollution crisis in India, the seeds of Warrior Moms were sown. Mothers across the nation joined hands as anti-pollution crusaders as a mark for their children’s future.
Moms Have Decided To Take Collective Action
Warrior Moms was launched on September 7, 2020, which aligns with the first International Day of Clean Air, for blue skies.
Warrior Moms are a group of environmentally conscious mothers, who believe that access to clean air is a fundamental human right. In contrast, air pollution violates the right to live in a safe, clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.
The plethora of problems that fuel the fire in mothers across India is the lack of information among peers about the pollution crisis. People fail to acknowledge the ever-rising problem because of their carefree attitude.
Therefore, the Warrior Moms have taken the burden on their shoulders to educate people about the apocalypse responsible for killing thousands of newborn children, respiratory illness, and instances of cancer.
Delhi Has The Worst Air In The World
India’s PM 2.5 levels are eight times more than WHO standards. Indians, especially people residing in Delhi NCR, are passively smoking 15-25 cigarettes every day, on an average.
The data insights are far more horrifying at this stage because the scientific study shows that the moment a child is born, they are exposed to harmful slow poison by inhaling toxic air.
The mothers aware of the catastrophic dilemma have raised their voices so that their children can lead a normal life: a life where they can play outdoors, without fear of pollution taking a hold of their breathing.
For holistic development, children should be exposed to outdoor activities instead of refraining from them. Apart from studies, physical activities should be implemented in everyday life.
It is seen that deterioration in air quality is taking a toll on everyone’s life, completely disrupting holistic growth.
Toxic Air Kills Millions In India
Exposure to harmful levels of air pollution causes respiratory problems in both adults and young children (Chakravarti, Khan, Kishore, Roy & Scott, 2019), while in-utero (in the womb) exposure to air pollution through their mother is linked to mortality (Currie & Walker 2011).
According to the State of Global Air report (2020), more than half of the infants’ deaths in 2019 were caused by outdoor air pollution: PM2.5. The rest are linked to household air pollution due to the use of charcoal and wood for cooking.
Toxic air killed more than 16.7 lakh people in India last year, and 7% were new-borns in their first month. Along with the children, the mothers are equally hit by the growing menace.
Mothers’ exposure to airborne particles during pregnancy is harmful, as babies may either be born prematurely or with a lower weight and contribute to the high risk of infant mortality.
In addition to this, follow postpartum depression, anxiety, and PCOD (polycystic ovarian disease), which take a massive toll on the mother and hampers the baby’s development.
What Is The Way Forward?
The elite section of the society can afford the luxury of air purifiers within their premise, but what about the underprivileged section of the society who are devoid of shelters as their last resort?
This is something we should ponder upon because clean air is a basic human right.
Warrior moms are the voice of mothers across India. It will act as a catalyst to amplify the voices of millions, a ray of hope for the future generation to gasp clean air.
This is the time to act, this is the time to react, and this is the time to reach out to policymakers so that the voices of Warrior Moms won’t go in vain.
The movement led by mothers will certainly reach a new height in the coming years, as the fire will burn until the demand for basic human rights is fulfilled. All the mothers should come and join the savage Warrior Moms.
It is a golden opportunity to collectively raise the voice, sway the policymakers, alter government decisions and seek the ‘right to breathe clean air‘.
After all, this is a question about survival.