Air pollution drives 7% death rate in 10 of India's largest cities: Lancet study
Delhi, experiences some of the world's worst air quality, endangering residents' health and revealing increasing health risks.
- Jul 4, 2024,
- Updated Jul 4, 2024 11:36 AM IST
More than seven percent of all deaths in 10 of India's largest cities are attributed to air pollution. Researchers are urging action to prevent tens of thousands of deaths annually. Smog-ridden Indian cities, including the capital Delhi, experience some of the world's worst air quality, endangering residents' health and revealing increasing health risks, according to The Lancet Planetary Health journal.
The new study, conducted by an Indian-led team, examined the levels of cancer-causing microparticles, known as PM2.5 pollutants, in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Shimla, and Varanasi.
Delhi was the worst affected, with 12,000 annual deaths attributed to air pollution, representing 11.5 percent of the total. Even cities with relatively better air quality, like Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai, had significant death rates, the researchers noted.
From 2008 to 2019, more than 33,000 annual deaths were linked to PM2.5 exposure exceeding the World Health Organization's recommendation of 15 micrograms per cubic meter. That represents 7.2 percent of the deaths recorded in those cities during that period.
Study co-author Joel Schwartz of Harvard University emphasized that lowering and enforcing the limit "will save tens of thousands of lives per year." He added that pollution control methods used elsewhere need to be urgently implemented in India.
The researchers also called for stricter air quality standards in India, as the current recommendation of 60 micrograms of PM2.5 per cubic meter is four times higher than WHO guidelines.
The WHO highlights that nearly everyone on Earth breathes air exceeding the recommended pollution levels, which can lead to strokes, heart disease, lung cancer, and other respiratory illnesses.
More than seven percent of all deaths in 10 of India's largest cities are attributed to air pollution. Researchers are urging action to prevent tens of thousands of deaths annually. Smog-ridden Indian cities, including the capital Delhi, experience some of the world's worst air quality, endangering residents' health and revealing increasing health risks, according to The Lancet Planetary Health journal.
The new study, conducted by an Indian-led team, examined the levels of cancer-causing microparticles, known as PM2.5 pollutants, in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Shimla, and Varanasi.
Delhi was the worst affected, with 12,000 annual deaths attributed to air pollution, representing 11.5 percent of the total. Even cities with relatively better air quality, like Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai, had significant death rates, the researchers noted.
From 2008 to 2019, more than 33,000 annual deaths were linked to PM2.5 exposure exceeding the World Health Organization's recommendation of 15 micrograms per cubic meter. That represents 7.2 percent of the deaths recorded in those cities during that period.
Study co-author Joel Schwartz of Harvard University emphasized that lowering and enforcing the limit "will save tens of thousands of lives per year." He added that pollution control methods used elsewhere need to be urgently implemented in India.
The researchers also called for stricter air quality standards in India, as the current recommendation of 60 micrograms of PM2.5 per cubic meter is four times higher than WHO guidelines.
The WHO highlights that nearly everyone on Earth breathes air exceeding the recommended pollution levels, which can lead to strokes, heart disease, lung cancer, and other respiratory illnesses.