A study published in The Lancet Planetary Health journal suggests that around 15 lakh deaths annually from 2009 to 2019 may be linked to long-term exposure to PM2.5 pollution.
Researchers, including those from Ashoka University in Haryana and the Centre for Chronic Disease Control in New Delhi, found that the entire population of India, approximately 140 crore people, lives in areas where PM2.5 levels exceed the World Health Organization's recommended annual average of five micrograms per cubic meter.
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The study also revealed that nearly 82% of India's population, or 110 crore people, reside in regions with annual PM2.5 levels higher than the limits set by the Indian National Ambient Air Quality Standards (40 micrograms per cubic meter).
PM2.5 refers to fine particulate matter with particles smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter. The researchers found that a 10-microgram-per-cubic-meter increase in annual PM2.5 pollution was linked to an 8.6% rise in yearly mortality.
For their study, the researchers analysed death data from 2009 to 2019 at the district level across India, using satellite data and more than 1,000 ground-monitoring stations to measure annual PM2.5 concentrations. Mortality data was obtained from the Civil Registration System.
The team noted that evidence on the impact of long-term exposure to air pollution on deaths in India is limited and inconsistent with studies conducted in other countries.
PM2.5 levels varied significantly across the years, with the lowest annual level recorded in Lower Subansiri district, Arunachal Pradesh (11.2 micrograms per cubic meter) in 2019, and the highest levels observed in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi (119 micrograms per cubic meter) in 2016.
(With PTI inputs).
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