New Delhi, Dec 17 (EFE). - Selling clean air has become a good business in New Delhi, the city that breathes the most polluted air in the world, driving up the demand for air purifiers to the point of exhausting stocks in some stores. "We have run out of air purifier stocks in recent days," Deepak, head of the LG electronics store in the Indian capital, told EFE. Their presence becomes critical especially from November, when air quality begins to worsen, becoming the only barrier to reducing exposure to toxic particles indoors. Getting one of these devices in the Indian capital is now a lottery, as many stores have very little stock left, especially in recent days when the city has recorded the worst pollution levels of the year. "Most stores in the area are the same, I have asked the factory to send us more units urgently because I am losing sales," explained Vishak Kapoor, owner of the electronics store in the center of the Indian capital. The Air Quality Index (AQI) hit the limits of the scales this week by exceeding 500 points and on Tuesday remained above 450, within the maximum 'severe' category, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). These figures are more than twenty times the levels recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and have led to a thick fog that reduced visibility to less than a kilometer during the early morning. "Demand grows every year; if we sold 20 units last year, this year we have reached 35," he added. In the last decade, air purifiers have become an essential element in the living rooms of Indian families with high and middle-high incomes. There is a sign for one of the sold-out air purifiers that reads: 'Breathe like in the West.' Photo EFE. The publication 'The clean air business, air purifiers run out in a polluted New Delhi' was first published in La Verdad Panamá. It refers to the immediate relief they feel in their homes despite the difficulty breathing, sore throat, and irritated eyes caused by the pale, opaque haze that settles over New Delhi in the winter. The WHO warns that air pollution is linked to nearly seven million premature deaths each year worldwide. At the end of one of the store's aisles, an empty glass display case summarizes the situation. Since Saturday, New Delhi has been in the strictest phase of its anti-pollution plan (GRAP), with construction work suspended and schools closed. New Delhi (India), 15/12/2025. - Vehicles travel on streets in New Delhi with low visibility due to air pollution in India. EFE/EPA/HARISH TYAGI. Luxury and Health. In another electronics store in central New Delhi, one of the few that still has stock, air purifiers occupy the central space of the counter. The merchant, who prefers to remain anonymous, emphasized that the models that sell out the fastest are the high-end ones, as families prioritize 'premium' brands over more economical options in the middle of a crisis. In the Indian market, the prices of these devices range from about 80 dollars for the most basic models to over 480 dollars for the high-end. "More and more people are coming to buy because they are more aware, but above all because they notice it in their health," explains the seller.
