CFA Student Ambassador BlogPosts: Lusha Jetly

Introduction: Care for Air launched its first Student Ambassador Programme in 2016. As part of the programme, we asked the young ambassadors (anywhere between 14 and 17 years old) to blog about their learning experience. Here are some of their voices.

A Problematic Pledge

Part one:

Not too many years ago,
We made a tryst with destiny.
And the time has come for us to redeem that pledge.
Not wholly, or full in measure
But very substantially.
And redeem it we shall,
The preparations are underway!
With plumes of toxic smoke,
We welcome the dirty air!
Match by match we light the fire,
To ignite Earth's funeral pyre.
The young and old celebrate,
With sulphurous fumes and nitrates!
What a noble pledge indeed,
Upheld by every caste and creed.
To mark glorious celebrations,
With death, disaster and desolation
Masked under bright lights and smoke-
Isn't it time you awoke?

Part two:

When you picked up your first firecracker,
You pledged to the cause.
When you lit your first cigarette,
You pledged to the cause.
When you switched to diesel,
You pledged to the cause.
And when you burned plastic on Lohri,
You pledged to the cause.
You also pledged to the cause,
When you didn't stop the kabaadi-wala
From burning the trash he collected.
Or when you let maali-bhaiya
Burn the leaves, unaffected.
Oh, what a noble pledge indeed,
Upheld by every caste and creed!

Part three:

Time and again,
Your allegiance was upheld.
It is time it is broken,
Crushed, and quelled.
For your forefathers swore an oath
To let us awaken
To life and freedom.
But you see, I am bound.
The strings of my mask tie me down to my,
Air purifier, which my mother insisted I bought,
Because my nebuliser has gone for repair,
And my inhaler won't help with Delhi air;
And this is why, you need to care,
Because the city now has to bear
With allegiance you swore
To a slow, painful death.

Lusha Jetley: I'm a 15 year old Sanskriti School student. When I am not been whisked away at parliamentary debates and MUNs, I'm writing poetry and clicking photographs, in attempts to encapsulate my thoughts about the world we live in today. My best friends include my violin, my dog Pepper and a good book.  My student initiative, Art for Sale aims to increase public awareness through the medium of art. This Diwali, we urged people to not burst crackers by sharing handmade diyas and posters in small gift packages.