Choking on shared air: The cross-border pollution crisis between India and Pakistan

Transboundary pollution has become a significant concern within the environmental debate and geopolitical perspectives of several countries around the world.

- DR ANKITA SHARMA

The matter is particularly pertinent to those areas that have adjacent borders and interconnected air sheds. The contaminants emitted by one nation pass over borders through dominant wind patterns and geographical features, thus determining the air quality of adjacent territories. For example, the Indo-Gangetic Plain in South Asia is severely polluted with airborne particulate matter originating from industrial activities, vehicular emissions, and agricultural waste burning—all happening within India and Pakistan.

South Asia ranks as one of the most polluted regions in the world; around 37 of the 40 cities with the highest pollution levels are located there. Almost 60 percent of the region's population resides in areas with threatening concentrations of PM2.5 particles that are tiny pollutants that trigger chronic respiratory diseases and the cause of approximately more than two million premature deaths in a year. The South Asian region is every winter clothed in a hazardous mix of pollutants as colder temperatures trap emissions, dust, and smoke from crop residue burning. Scientists say this pollution could shorten life expectancy in the region by over five years.