What Are We Breathing?

New analysis shows an alarming increase in the early deaths from particulate and ozone pollution. India accounts for over a quarter of these deaths.

- Anumita Roychowdhury

AIR POLLUTION is the cause of 4.2 million premature deaths in the world each year. Of these, 1.1 million deaths happen in India, suggest the recent global burden of disease (GBD) estimates by US-based Health Effect Institute (HEI). The report—State of Global Air 2017—serves as a warning to India, which now rivals China in the highest number of premature deaths due to PM2.5, tiny particles suspended in the air that can lodge into lungs and cause diseases. The country also has the highest number of early deaths due to ozone pollution.

The rate of increase in early deaths in India is alarming (see ‘Dubious distinction’ p17). While early deaths due to PM2.5 in China have increased by 17.2 per cent since 1990, in India these have increased by 48 per cent. Similarly, early deaths due to ozone in China have stabilised since 1990, but India has registered an astounding 148 per cent increase, highlighting the need for urgent action. “We are seeing increasing air pollution problems worldwide and the new report explains why air pollution is a major contributor to early death. We have seen progress in some parts of the world, but serious challenges remain,” says Dan Greenbaum, president of HEI.

Interestingly, India’s Environment Minister Anil Madhav Dave has discredited the report saying Indian institutions should be trusted in such matters. He has said that the Union health ministry will soon release a report on the “trends and impact of pollution on human health”.

Ominous signs for India