Thousands Of Children To Benefit Through Immediate Donation
Of 200 Blueair Air Purifiers to Delhi Schools
India, November 22, 2016 – Blueair, a world leader in indoor air cleaning technologies,
today committed to positively impact the lives of school children in India through a ‘Clean
Air for Everyone’ program.
Blueair’s nationwide program gets underway with the immediate donation of 200
Blueair air purifiers that will benefit the lives of 10,000 students in schools across the
capital. Going forward, Blueair said it is looking to make theprogram sustainable over the
long term by encouraging like-minded corporations interested in improving the health of
school children to partner in creating joint air pollution battling programs. Designed to give
school children a pollution-free environment in classrooms, the Blueair program was
launched in Delhi inthe presence of Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport
and Highways.
“Clean air is a basic right of every child, and a society’s concern towards its future
generations is displayed in how it cares for those who are most susceptible and vulnerable.
Sadly, air pollution is such an enormous problem that millions of children across India are
breathing airthat threatens their development, health and safety,” said Bengt Rittri,
Blueair’s founder and CEO.
He added: “We are failing those children if we do not help them. On the back of the
severe pollution seen during Diwali in Delhi, Blueair is launching this initiative
byimmediately donating air purifiers to Delhi schools as a first step.”
Children are particularly at risk from polluted air. A 2015 Blueair report that studied
the lung capacity of children living in four major cities, including Delhi, found that 40% of
the children in the national capital were suffering ‘poor’ or ‘bad’ lung capacity.
Today’s donation will benefit many thousands of school childrenby putting Blueair’s
health-protecting air purifiers in classrooms across the capital. As part of a longer-term
project, Blueair says itlooks forward to working closely with the government to help spread
the initiative and increase awareness among younger people about ways to combat air
pollution and protect the environment.
“Fighting pollution is a partnership between people and governments, and should be
jointly pursued. However, we must provide the most vulnerable immediate relief by at least
protecting them from contaminated indoor air, which can be many times worse than that
outside. For us, it is a natural step to start with classrooms,” said Girish Bapat, Blueair
Director South and West Asia.
“We are always deeply concerned about the health of our youngest, and we
appreciate the start that Blueair has made with this donation drive. We plan to usethe air
purifiers in the classes of the youngest students, and create a safe air zone in classrooms,”
said Mr. Liris Thomas, Trustee, New Generation Trust, which runs schools called Rafa Homes
for underprivileged and HIV affected children aged between 5 to 13.
“I started Blueair 20 years ago because I wanted my son and daughter to benefit
from the same clean air where we lived in the city as they did at my summer house in the
Stockholm archipelago. I am deeply pained when I see suffering being inflicted on innocent
children by air pollution. For over 20 years we have been driven by the goalto deliver the
world’s best indoor air purifiers. Now, with the ‘Clean Air For Everyone’ program, we are
making a meaningful difference to children’s lives by providing themair as clean as nature
intended,” said Mr. Rittri.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
o In its ‘Clean the air for children’ report, UNICEF said air pollutants don’t only harm
children’s developing lungs – they can actually cross the blood-brain barrier and
permanently damage their developing brains. UNICEF said outdoor and indoor air
pollution are together directly linked with pneumonia and other respiratory diseases
that account for almost one in 10 under-five deaths, making air pollution one of the
leading dangers to children’s health.
o A new study in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and
Critical Care Medicine found childhood asthma was 20 percent higher among people
exposed to London’s Great Smog event during their first year of life compared to
those living outside the city.
o Schools in Delhi receiving the first donation of Blueair air purifiers include The Blind
Relief Association, New Generation Trust, Guru Harkrishan Public School, Choghlae
Public School and Nutan Marathi School.
