As winter tightens its grip across the Indo-Gangetic plains, a familiar, unsettling grey horizon has once again descended upon Northern India. From the departure gates of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport to the high-speed corridors of the Yamuna Expressway, life has been slowed to a crawl.
The debate over what exactly we are breathing reached a fever pitch this week after the fourth T20 International between India and South Africa in Lucknow was abandoned on Wednesday without a ball being bowled. While officials cited “persistent fog,” the reality for the players—some seen wearing face masks during warm-ups—and the fans was far more caustic.