Produced by: BusinessToday Desk
The latest State of Global Air 2025 report delivers a chilling revelation — air pollution killed 2 million people in India in 2023 alone. That’s not just smog in the air; it’s a silent epidemic suffocating the nation.
Nearly nine out of ten of these deaths are from non-communicable diseases — heart attacks, strokes, cancers, diabetes, and now, dementia. The air we breathe is rewriting India’s disease map.
For the first time, scientists have firm evidence that polluted air damages the brain. Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) can shrink brain tissue, speed up cognitive decline, and lead to dementia — 54,000 Indian deaths in 2024 alone.
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States like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Rajasthan, and West Bengal are choking hardest — each reporting over 100,000 air-pollution deaths. Women face a double hit, both as caregivers and as those more prone to dementia.
As India grows older, its vulnerability deepens. Air pollution is behind seven in ten COPD deaths, one in three lung cancer deaths, and one in five diabetes deaths — making age itself a health hazard.
While deaths from smoky kitchens are dropping, outdoor killers are rising. PM2.5 and ozone exposure are now India’s main air toxins — with 75% of citizens breathing air worse than WHO’s safety limit.
Worldwide, air pollution causes 8 million deaths every year — one in eight deaths globally. Older adults are the worst hit, with 95% of air-pollution-related deaths linked to chronic diseases.
Experts warn India won’t meet its UN SDG 3.4 target of reducing NCD deaths by one-third by 2030 unless it tackles pollution head-on — linking clean air, healthcare, transport, and climate action under one umbrella.
Air pollution is no longer just about lungs — it’s attacking minds. The SoGA 2025 report calls it a “silent epidemic”, urging India to treat clean air as medicine — before the damage becomes irreversible.