Pictures speak an universal language.
A total lockdown has been in effect in India since the 22nd of March 2020. This was declared to help contain the spread of the novel Corona virus. The cyclone Nisarga hit the west coast of the state of Maharashtra yesterday [3rd June 2020] evening. Thank God, the cyclone did not cause any damage in the city of Mumbai.
This picture was taken yesterday, the 3rd of June 2020 from my window in North Mumbai.
There are some very important things that I would like you to notice here.
Never before in Mumbai has the horizon been so transparent and pure. The setting sun is seen so clearly. It is so bright and the air is transparent, as it ought to be.
Before the lockdown, Mumbai, as with many other large urban cities, had a brown haze which extended up for thousands of feet from the ground. Aviation experts were well aware of this phenomenon. This is called the Asian brown cloud.
The Asian brown cloud is created by a range of airborne particles and pollutants from combustion (e.g., woodfires, cars, and factories), biomass burning[5] and industrial processes with incomplete burning.[6] The cloud is associated with the winter monsoon (November/December to April) during which there is no rain to wash pollutants from the air.[7]
One major impact is on health. A 2002 study indicated nearly two million people die each year, in Asia alone, from conditions related to the brown cloud.[12]
The effect of the lock down has been dramatic in reducing this pollutuon. The health benefits of this will be seen for years in the future.
Data from the pollution control board documents this huge reduction in atmospheric pollution across Maharashtra.
This certainly shows that the lock down has helped to improve the air and help the earth to recover from the effects of man made pollution. One needs to question why we need to pollute the earth in our frenzied desire to grab more and more unwanted junk into our lives.
Sunsets of exceptional beauty are possible when we stop pollutiing the earth to feed mindless consumerism.
I hope we will learn to live by respecting nature in the future. The lessons learnt during the lockdown and the Corona pandemic should always be remembered. Let our needs be simple and few. Let us treasure people and use things, instead of the other way around as it was before the lockdown, I pray.
We are called to be good stewards ot this planet. God has kept us as tenants on this earth. Let us align our lives to His to enjoy life in all its abundance.
Love, power and a sound mind 