People in five districts advised to wear masks due to toxic air blowing from India

By Rathindra Kuruwita

Sri Lanka’s Central Environmental Authority (CEA) on Wednesday (17) advised people in five districts to wear masks due to the drop in air quality.

Media spokesman for the CEA, Ajith Weerasundara said that winds carrying polluted air from India had caused the drop in air quality.

He said it was better for residents of Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Mannar and Batticaloa districts to wear masks outside, especially the sick and the elderly.

“We continuously monitor air quality, and we have seen deterioration in the past few days. We are now at a level where the air quality can have some impact on human health, especially among the vulnerable,” he said.

Weerasundara said the air quality in Sri Lanka would probably improve following the change in wind patterns.

He said the country experiences this drop in air quality in December and January due to polluted winds blowing from the sub-continent.