Death by Breathing!

It is a known fact that humans and animals can last a few weeks or months without food, a few weeks without water, but only a few minutes at the most without air. Thus the importance of constant air presence for sustaining life is a must. Yet it is not enough to be surrounded by the all-pervasive air. It is also crucial that the air is clean, fresh, and pollution free since inhaling polluted air can lead to diseases of various proportions and gravity. However, in the present world, this natural resource that we cannot live without has become the cause of human deaths, chronic diseases, infant and maternal mortality, and food and water contamination. Air pollution is now one of the leading causes of death in India and Asia.   The India-specific findings of the new Global Burden of Disease (GBD) count, a global initiative involving the World Health Organisation, stated that air pollution had become the fifth largest killer in India. These India-specific findings were released by the scientists of the US-based Health Effects Institute (a part of the Ambient Air Quality Expert Group of the GBD assessment) at the workshop jointly organized by the Centre for Science and Environment, Indian Council of Medical Research and the US-based Health Effects Institute in New Delhi on February 13, 2013. Though many civil society groups, NGOs, environmental activists, and a few government bodies have lobbied for clean air, only a few on-the-ground results have shown in this direction. Much of this has been attributed to long delays in passing laws, weak laws that let the offenders and air-polluting industries get little or no punishment, corruption and greed, unregulated infrastructure development and unplanned cities, and the burning of harvest stubble and other wastes in the open.      The GBD tracks deaths and illnesses from all causes worldwide every ten years. GBD has ranked air pollution as one of the top 10 killers in the world and the sixth most dangerous killer in South Asia. Particulate air pollution is now three places behind indoor air pollution, India's second highest killer. The India-specific analysis was calculated from the more extensive global efforts using estimates of air pollution exposure at the national level and India-specific deaths and incidence of leading causes of deaths. Disparate actions and fragmented policies and their poor implementation have led to this scenario regarding air pollution. It has shown a sharp rise in cases of bronchitis among children, increasing instances of cancer, bone disease, and lung malfunction in all age groups.   The Indian Council of Medical Research report on diseases caused by air pollution states that such conditions lead to 18% of all deaths in the country. The death rate from outdoor air pollution increased by 115% from 1990 to 2019, and economic loss was 1.4% of the GDP, or equal to US$ 36.8 billion. These shocking statistics imply that we must urgently tackle the situation before it is too late.  Some other findings by GBD for India that also merit attention are:  • Shocking increase in Indian death toll due to air pollution-related diseases: Air pollution is the fifth leading cause of death in India after high blood pressure, indoor air pollution, tobacco smoking, and poor nutrition. About 620,000 premature deaths occur from air pollution-related diseases. This is up from 100,000 in 2000, a six-fold increase.   • Massive loss in healthy years in India: Air pollution is the seventh leading cause behind the loss of about 18 million healthy years of life due to air illness. It comes after indoor air pollution, tobacco smoking, high blood pressure, childhood underweight, low nutritional status, and alcohol use.   • Respiratory and cardiovascular diseases key reasons for air pollution-induced premature deaths in India: Premature deaths caused by air pollution are caused primarily due to a range of cardiorespiratory ailments. These include stroke (25.48%), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (17.32), Ischemic heart disease (48.6%), lower respiratory infections (6.4%), and trachea, bronchus, and lung cancer (2.02%).   India is just a case study in question. The air pollution index, or AQI worldwide, shows enormous deterioration. It is also beginning to cause the melting of the Arctic and the Antarctic ice covers, leading to imminent disaster and drowning of many coastal countries. The government of the Andaman and Nicobar islands near India has confirmed that their country will be submerged under water in another 30 to 50 years and has started making desperate efforts to relocate populations and implement environmentally friendly policies. Details can be read here.   Air pollution is a year-round problem, yet often questions are raised regarding its severity and primary sources. Despite several studies on the topic, there needs to be more consensus on source contributions. Substantial contributions include vehicle exhaust, road dust, construction dust, cooking and heating, open waste burning, light and heavy industries, diesel generator sets, and seasonal sources such as agricultural burning and dust storms. However, the situation is worsening in the blame game between political factions, environmental legislative bodies, corruption, and little real effort. The judiciary system, comprising the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal, has played its role in addressing the air pollution problem in Delhi and the larger Indian subcontinent. In some cases, they have mandated technical, economic, and institutional solutions ahead of the national and state departments. Despite these efforts, much must be done since artificial country boundaries do not restrict air. The effects of one country's industrial and pollution policies are felt in other countries separated by thousands of kilometers. It is indeed time that a collective global effort is put into place.