Artificial Lung Installation exercise was aimed at showing the effect of air pollution on your lungs through a real life model.

An installation depicting human lungs retrofitted with HEPA filters and a fan that mimics breathing was placed at Delhi’s Sir Ganga Ram Hospital as part of a campaign launched by the Help Delhi Breathe Initiative, Lung Care Foundation and Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi from 3rd – 13th November, 2018. As you can see in the images above, the colour was choke white on Day1, but started turning grey within 24 hrs and turned completely black in 10 days time (picture above). The same air is being breathed by all residents of Delhi and one can imagine the amount of toxins which will be getting deposited in lungs.

These toxins not only damage lung, but also get absorbed into blood circulation and affect every organ in the body especially heart brain, and reproductive organs. Though it affects everyone, the effect is worse in children, pregnant ladies and elderly people.

A brief press conference was held at the auditorium of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital. The panellists included Prof. (Dr.) Arvind Kumar, Founder & Managing Trustee, Lung Care Foundation & Chairman, Centre for Chest Surgery, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital; Dr. S.P. Byotra, Vice-Chairman, Board of Management, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Mrs. Bhavreen Kandhari, Member, My Right to Breathe and mother of twin daughters, who is greatly affected by the problem. The session was convened by Ms. Reecha Upadhyay, Campaign Director, Purpose.

Students from Bal Bharati Public School, Ganga Ram Hospital Marg and Salwan Public School, Rajinder Nagar representing the children’s community across the city, also joined the launch event with some posters stating their plight because of the poor air quality in the city. The process of change in the colour of lungs was documented through photographs, media attention and getting the public to witness the transformation of our lungs when we breathe dirty air in Delhi.