HYDERABAD:  A study by researchers from India, China and USA led by Shovan Kumar Sahu of IIT-Guwahati looking into sources pumping PM 2.5 into the air and health risks caused by pollution in eight major cities has found that the risk of suffering Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD), lung cancer, stroke and ischemic heart diseases (IHD) is higher in cities located in the north and east of the country.

PM2.5 is the mass of particles with  diameter generally less than 2.5 micrometres per cubic metre of air.
The eight cities considered for the study recently published in international journal Air quality, Atmosphere & Health are Delhi and Lucknow in north; Patna and Kolkata in the east; Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai in south and Mumbai in west. 

The risk of life-threatening diseases such as COPD, lung cancer, IHD and stroke is higher in north and east Indian cities due to high PM2.5 levels. The average concentration of PM2.5 in north, east, south and west Indian cities as per the study was 125, 62, 46 and 44 micrograms per meter cube. The average concentrations in south and west are lower than the prescribed maximum value of 60. While the risk of COPD, lung cancer, ischemic heart diseases and stroke was calculated to be 1.35, .15, 1.39 and 2.06 in the north, it was 1.17, 1.22, 1.28 and 1.54 respectively in the south. 

Pollution in Uttar Pradesh is causing deaths in Delhi, Lucknow and Patna
Lack of effective air pollution control measures in Uttar Pradesh, home to one of the most polluted cities in the country, including Agra and Kanpur, is a major reason for high mortality rates in Delhi, Lucknow and Patna. PM2.5 level emissions from the State increase further in winters.