The Chinese government has agreed to introduce changes to better deal with the sustained smog that has been weighing over the country for almost a week now, within just 24 hours after a massive social media campaigns by parents of school children in Beijing.
The Chinese government in Beijing agreed, on Thursday, to install air purifying systems inside schools to prevent schoolchildren from being exposed to the smog, Washington Post reported.
The move followed a rigorous social media campaign in China, carried mostly by middle class parents of schoolchildren after they started falling sick.
In a petition, protesting parents claimed that there was a lack of proper filtration system in schools in Beijing, one of the worst affected areas in China by increasing smog. Within 24 hours the petition had millions of views and over 27,000 comments.
Earlier, schools in China had started installing huge, greenhouse-like domes for schoolchildren to play in during breaks and recess so that they do not have to breathe in the polluted air outside, at least during school hours.
The decision however, did not satisfy many who claimed that the move would only protect Beijing’s children, while children in other parts of the country would continue to suffer.
Others said that an air purification system was not the only solution and more integrated efforts need to be taken by the government to safeguard those breathing in the polluted air.
Feature Image Source: Reuters