New Delhi: In the last two decades, there has been a 2.5-fold increase in deaths due to PM2.5 pollution in India. This has been said in a new report by the Center for Science and Environment (CSE). In a report released by Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav on Tuesday, it has been said that in 2019, one out of every four deaths due to air pollution occurred in India.
Data collected by environmental think tank CSE, and its “State of India’s Environment Report”, showed that 66.7 million people died due to air pollution in the world. Of these, 16.7 lakh deaths occurred in India. In China, 18.5 lakh people died due to air pollution.
The report said that in 2019, 4,76,000 children died globally due to health effects associated with exposure to air pollution. These children were up to a month old. Of these, 1,16,000 children died in India. Poor air quality was the fourth leading cause of premature death worldwide in 2019. The report said, “In the last two decades, there has been a 2.5-fold increase in deaths due to PM 2.5 present in the air in India. It increased from 2,79,500 in 1990 to 9,79,900 in 2019.
PM2.5 refers to fine particles that penetrate deep into the body and promote inflammation in the lungs and respiratory tract, posing a risk of heart and respiratory problems, including a weakened immune system. However, the data shows that there has been a reduction of more than 40 percent in the deaths due to air pollution at the household level in the country from 10,41,000 in 1990 to 6,06,900 in 2019.
