Tehran's air quality remained unhealthy for the thirteenth consecutive day.

Kindergartens, preschools, and elementary schools in Tehran were closed on Monday, November 14, after air pollution in Tehran and all cities in the province, except Damavand, Firouzkouh, and Pardis, became severe.

Meanwhile, according to the state-run IRNA news agency, based on a resolution by the Tehran Air Pollution Emergency Committee, this closure has been extended to Tuesday as well.

In this regard, according to Tasnim News Agency, Hassan Abedi, Deputy Chief of Greater Tehran Traffic Police, said on Monday that these restrictions will be in effect until further notice.

On Saturday, Tehran's Air Pollution Emergency Committee also passed resolutions to reduce Tehran's air pollution, including a plan to halt sand mining operations until the weather returns to normal, cancel sports bells in Tehran's schools, and cancel public sports in parks and sports complexes in Tehran.

According to AFP, the index of "particles less than 2.5 microns" in Tehran reached 156 on Monday, which is three times the safety level required by the World Health Organization.

Based on the "Air Quality Index Health Significance Level Criteria", the "concentration of suspended particulate matter with a diameter of less than 2.5 microns in the air" in the range of 101 to 150 is declared "unhealthy for sensitive groups" (orange) and in the range of 151 to 200 is declared "unhealthy" (red).

The weather in Tehran and several major Iranian cities reached "red" conditions on some days last winter, when an odd-even traffic plan was implemented in Tehran, and kindergartens, preschool centers, and elementary schools in this city and the cities of Isfahan, Tabriz, Arak, and Karaj were closed several times.

Mohammad Rastegari, Deputy Director of Environmental Supervision and Monitoring of Tehran Province, announced that Tehran's air is unhealthy for all groups and said: The "particles less than 2.5 microns" index in Rey County, with a number of 200, indicated the highest level of pollution among the stations in the Iranian capital.

Regarding the possibility of schools closing on Tuesday, he also said: "We cannot comment on this issue at this time and we must examine the numbers received from air pollution monitoring stations."

Meanwhile, Hassan Abbasi, spokesman for Tehran's emergency department, announced the deployment of four ambulances and 22 ambulance engines across the city in response to the intensification of air pollution.

He noted that emergency forces are also on alert.

According to news agencies, the issue of air pollution in the Iranian capital has also been raised in the Islamic Consultative Assembly.

According to the Khaneh-e-Mellat news agency, affiliated with the parliament, Mohammad Dehghan, a member of parliament from Chenaran, referring to the fact that the death toll increases by 20 percent during times of severe air pollution, asked the government: "Why has it allowed the air pollution situation to reach the alert and emergency stage, while predictions had been made in this regard for the past 15 days and it was also announced that this year's rainfall will be 25 percent less than last year?"

He also called for preventing the operation of cars and some factories that are sources of air pollution.

Mohammad Javad Fathi, a Tehran representative in the parliament, announced on Monday the letter from Tehran province representatives to the president to solve the problem of air pollution in Tehran and major cities, saying: "We are collecting signatures for this letter, and after collecting signatures, this letter will be delivered to the president."

Source: Tabnak, Radio Farda, ISNA