India, Oct. 7 -- The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) for Delhi-NCR last month advised the governments of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh to ensure that sports activities and competitions in schools are not scheduled in November and December, citing the effect of poor air quality on the children who take part.

Exercise affects how a person breathes. An athlete takes in many times more air than someone at rest, and more of it through the mouth, which bypasses some of the filtering done by the nose. A child who is running a race on a smoggy morning, for instance, would draw far more pollution, and draw it deeper into the lungs, than a classmate sitting at a desk.

CAQM is the body that directs or recommends measures...