Air Pollution in India and green recovery

What is the state of air pollution in India?

• India recorded the highest PM2.5 exposure and the most increase in deaths between 2010 and 2019.
• Air pollution accounts for 20 per cent of newborn deaths worldwide, 24 per cent of these infant deaths occur in India which is the highest. This defies the principles of inter-generational justice.
• The State of Global Air that is a collaborative study of Health Effect Institute and Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation of Global Burden of Disease Project has presented that:
• Out of the total tally of 6,670,000 particulate matter (PM) 2.5-attributable deaths globally, 980,000 deaths occurred in India which was a 61 per cent increase since 2010.
• The other silent killer sidling up in India is ozone: the country has recorded an 84 per cent increase in ozone-related deaths since 2010.

What is the effect of air pollution on newborns?

• The effect of air pollution on infants that shows an estimated 1.8 million deaths worldwide, mostly within 27 days of childbirth. Mothers’ exposure to toxic air leads to pre-term birth and lower birth weight.
• Babies born too small or too early become more vulnerable to lower-respiratory infections, diarrhoeal diseases, brain damage, inflammation, blood disorders and jaundice.
• Inflammation and oxidative stress deeply affect the health of pregnant women and babies as particles and toxic components move across membranes of the lungs and get carried to different parts of the body and affect placental function and the fetus.
• Burning of solid fuels for cooking accounts for 64 per cent of infant deaths while the rest is due to outdoor air pollution. Hence, vulnerability of poorer women increases.
• According to director of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, the young and the infants whose lungs and respiratory systems are not yet developed have higher chances of chronic illness, lung damage, and death. This compromises their quality of life.
• COVID-19 and air pollution : Exposure to air pollution can compromise immune defense, making people more prone to respiratory and other infections.

What are the steps to be taken for green recovery?

• The National Clean Air Programme should improve legally due multi-sector action across regions to clean up all air shelters.
• Deeper sectoral reforms are required to clean up emissions from vehicles, power plants, industries and local sources like construction and waste.
• Effective intervention can lead to verifiable improvement in health outcome as this is evident in the reduction in household pollution exposure from 54 per cent to 36 percent due to improved access to clean fuels in India.

Way forward

• There can be substantial economic benefit from improvement in health outcomes related to air pollution, as a lot of these diseases are preventable and so required changes should be made to improve the existing situation.