A plan to combat air pollution in New Delhi was announced by authorities Friday, as the Indian capital looks to lighten the toxic smog blanket that chokes the city, especially in winter.

An alternating ban on cars with odd and even number plates, free pollution masks and a dedicated government "war room" to handle complaints about dirty air are among the measures to be implemented this year.

Delhi is one of the world's most polluted cities and each winter, seasonal crop stubble burning, dense cloud cover and smoke from millions of Diwali firecrackers turn its skies a putrid yellow.

So far, government-led efforts have failed to tackle the country's air quality problem, which a 2017 US study found kills one million people prematurely in India every year.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said Friday that the road-rationing scheme would be in place between November 4-15, meaning cars with odd and even plates would be allowed on alternate days in that period.

It is not the first time the scheme has been tried in the capital -- it was put into action twice in 2016, only for a few days each time.

However, a 2018 study by Indian government scientists found that the odd-even rule did not succeed in reducing emissions, and may even have increased them due to disruption to normal traffic patterns.

Kejriwal said face masks that filter lung-damaging pollution particles would be made available to city residents for free.

The government also intends to use water sprinklers to control dust levels, he said, adding that a separate plan was in place to fight for cleaner air in 12 "hotspots" with the highest pollution levels.

"We are also setting up a war room where complaints related to pollution would be taken care of," he said.

The chief minister, who last week announced that Delhi's pollution levels were down by 25 percent, said the government's action plan also includes delivering seeds and plants to residents.

Indonesians choked by forest fire haze pray for rain
Pekanbaru, Indonesia (AFP) Sept 13, 2019 - Hundreds held a mass prayer for rain in a smoke-filled Indonesian city on Friday, desperately hoping that downpours will extinguish forest fires and wash away toxic haze covering wide swathes of the country that has forced mass school closures.

Illegal fires to clear land for farming are raging on Indonesia's Sumatra and Borneo islands with firefighters battling round the clock through charred forests, and water-bombing helicopters deployed to douse the flames.

Dense smoke has blanketed Pekanbaru, a provincial capital on Sumatra, leaving the sky dark even at midday and residents fearing for their health.

Around 1,000 Pekanbaru residents -- many dressed in white Muslim robes with rudimentary face masks -- held a prayer Friday in an open field as a thick, acrid fog drifted around them.

"I'm praying so that the rain will come immediately and this smog will be gone soon," said retired 57-year-old civil servant Rahmad, who goes by one name.

"It's been really bad for the past month -- I can't breathe if I don't wear a mask. Some of my neighbours have gotten really sick," he told AFP.

Friday is a holy day in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority country, where forest fires are an annual problem but have been worsened this year by particularly dry weather.

Fatimah El-Kareem, a 26-year-mother, fled Pekanbaru with her baby over health fears.

"I was so worried. My child is only one year old and still so vulnerable," she told AFP by telephone from hometown in another part of Sumatra.

"The smog isn't only suffocating, but it smells terrible... Every morning it was just getting worse and worse -- you couldn't get any fresh air," she added.

International concern has been mounting about the long-term impact of such blazes, as rainforests play a vital role in protecting the planet against global warming.

- 'Never been this tired' -

"The haze really affects me tremendously. I can't breathe or do things outside as I normally do," elementary school teacher Yulinar said at the mass prayer, coughing and squinting her bloodshot eyes.

The 45-year-old, who also uses one name, said she hoped she and her students could soon return to their shuttered school.

The governor of smog-hit Central Kalimantan on Borneo island -- which Indonesia shares with Malaysia and Brunei -- said Friday nearly 3,900 schools would be closed temporarily to protect students, with more than 9,000 shuttered in Sumatra.

Officials across the border in Malaysia said dozens of schools would be closed on Friday in the region surrounding its haze-hit capital Kuala Lumpur.

Back in Sumatra, Hendri Kusnardi was among thousands of firefighters deployed to battle the blazes.

"We're working non-stop," said the 25-year-old, dirty and drenched in sweat.

"I've never been this tired. But I'm not the only one -- everyone's exhausted."

The fires in Indonesia have sent toxic smoke floating over Malaysia, triggering a diplomatic row, as nearby Singapore has also warned residents to reduce outdoor activities.

Frictions spiked after Malaysian Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin this week accused her Indonesian counterpart of being "in denial", after Jakarta insisted fires in Malaysia had caused the smog there.

On Friday, Indonesia said it had sealed off dozens of plantations where smog-belching fires are blazing, and warned that owners -- including Malaysia and Singapore-based firms -- could face criminal charges if the investigation turns up evidence of illegal burning.

Jakarta is struggling to tame the blazes as many burn underground in carbon-rich peat, which has been cleared across vast areas of the country for plantations.

"I hope farmers and companies stop starting these fires," Rahmad said in Pekanbaru. "It's a man-made disaster."

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Our Polluted World and Cleaning It Up

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Germany plans to ban single-use plastic shopping bags next year
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