Delhi’s heritage walks hit as pollution plays spoilsport: Here’s how organisers are coping

“Due to the terrible air quality in Delhi, walks for the coming weekend will not be conducted. For subsequent weeks, we will decide depending on AQI severity,” he wrote on his Facebook page on Monday.

On what prompted his decision, Hashmi told The Indian Express: “…stepping out is becoming difficult. People are suffering from different problems and you can’t expect them to come for walks in such a scenario…”

Apart from his weekend walks, which are open to the general public, Hashmi has also cancelled his weekday walks reserved for students and private groups. “The last time I had to make such a decision was in the winter of 2022,” he said.

Hashmi is not alone. The prevailing situation has also affected others attached to the heritage sector.

Taking a break from work was something that the team of Asif Khan Dehlvi, founder of Delhi Karavan, had advised him to do amid the spike in pollution level. “I did give it a thought but then people are still going out, right?” he asked. “Life is still going on. And it should go on.”
However, he is reconsidering his choice of venue for his latest walk. “I am thinking of a place that has a lot of greenery so that the impact can be somewhat minimised,” he said before settling on the verdant Sundar Nursery as a venue for his latest event.

Acknowledging the “occupational hazard,” Rameen Khan, founder of City Tales, said, “The degraded air quality of Delhi is the bane for a profession like ours wherein the attendants have to spend considerable time out in the open. Since winter is the prime season for walks in monuments, significant smog affects attendance during the events.”

Rameen Khan (in green) during his food cum heritage walk in Chandni Chowk on Saturday. (Photo credit: City Tales)

For patrons like Ananya Kundu, a development sector professional, the passion for heritage trumps everything else. “”The current situation did affect my decision to attend heritage walks. The AQI was extremely bad earlier this week, which is why I was reluctant to leave the house. But since winter is the only good time to go on walks, I have been trying to take precautions like wearing masks, sunglasses etc before heading out,” she said.

Heritage professionals, meanwhile, are hoping for the weather to improve before planning their next move. “If the weather behaves, we will see,” said Hashmi when asked about his plans for the next week.