The latest global report on the state of air pollution has an ominous warning for India. The country recorded the world’s highest annual average exposure to PM 2.5 (Particulate Matter of 2.5 micrometre diameter) pollutants last year. Contrary to the NDA government’s claims that annual air pollution levels are coming down, the country has been recording a steady spike in the PM 2.5 since 2010. According to the State of Global Air 2020, of the 20 most populous countries, 14 have recorded a gradual improvement in air quality but India, Bangladesh, Niger, Pakistan and Japan are among those that have recorded an increase in air pollution levels. This runaway pollution is leading to a disastrous impact on public health. In 2019, over 1.16 lakh infants died within a month after birth due to exposure to severe air pollution. This is the first-ever comprehensive analysis of air pollution’s global impact on newborns. The research findings suggest that exposure to polluted air during pregnancy is linked to low weight and premature birth. The report also suggested that long-term exposure to outdoor and household air pollution contributed to over 1.67 million annual deaths from stroke, heart attack, diabetes, lung cancer, chronic lung diseases, and neonatal diseases in India last year. It is clear that long-term exposure to air pollution can cause many of the health conditions associated with increased vulnerability to Covid-19 such as diabetes, and chronic heart and lung diseases.
There’s growing evidence suggesting that people living in areas with high air pollution are likely to experience more severe outcomes from Covid-19. Even before the outbreak of the pandemic, India carried a heavy burden of chronic respiratory and other diseases. Exposures to air pollution have been shown to affect the human body’s immune defence making an individual more susceptible to respiratory infections such as pneumonia. With poor air quality emerging as the single most dangerous risk to public health, the issue brooks no delay. The anti-pollution measures must be monitored on a real-time basis to ensure that they yield desired results at the ground level. At the same time, there is a need for a strong push towards the behaviourial change of citizens to make a real difference to the situation. The problem of air pollution cannot be solved overnight. With the National Clean Air Programme and introduction of BS-VI emission standards, India has just made a beginning to improve air quality and it is critical that the efforts are continued and expanded beyond the urban centres over the next few years in order to see improvements in air quality. This will require concerted action in a mission mode at the national, State and local levels.
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