By Tim Binnall
Residents of a northern region of India were amazed last week when they woke up and realized that parts of the Himalayan mountain range had become visible to them for the first time in decades thanks to a downturn in air pollution brought about by a nation-wide coronavirus lockdown. The remarkable development was reportedly first noticed last Friday when numerous people living in the city of Jalandhar and surrounding areas took to social media to express wonder at what they were seeing.
According to several observers, this was the first time in 30 years that the Himalayas, which are located approximately 100 miles away from the area, were visible to residents of the region. As such, the moment was something of a milestone for many young people who grew up in the area and had never seen the mountain range from that perspective. The reason for the remarkable turn of events is that there has been a precipitous drop in air pollution in India following a coronavirus lockdown which was initiated in late March.