Children march through Delhi to protest against the pollution Prakash Singh/Getty ImagesNew Delhi residents are praying for rain after a government plan to clean the city’s polluted skies with water from helicopters was grounded. The proposal for a state-owned company to try to spray away the world’s worst urban pollution failed to take off because the smog made visibility too poor for helicopters to fly. “With the prevailing smog, it is not possible for the helicopters to carry out operations,” BP Sharma, the chairman of Pawan Hans Helicopters, told The Indian Express. “We have communicated the same to the Delhi government.”The aborted plan is one example of Indian authorities’ failure to respond effectively to a public health crisis that has choked the city since last month. Schools were closed because pollution levels were categorised as…

Source: The Times November 15, 2017 17:03 UTC