If you thought air pollution is only Delhi’s problem, it’s time to broaden your knowledge on the subject. Air pollution is entire India’s problem.
According to a new research by World Health Organization (WHO), 14 of the world’s most polluted cities are in India.
Other cities
Besides Delhi, Varanasi, Kanpur, Faridabad, Gaya, Patna, Agra, Muzaffarpur, Srinagar, Gurgaon, Jaipur, Patiala and Jodhpur are among world’s most polluted cities based on the amount of particulate matter PM 2.5 in the air.
Delhi Air Pollution | Source: Reuters
In terms of PM10 levels, 13 cities in India figured among the 20 most-polluted cities of the world in 2016, a PTI report said.
Apart form 14 Indian cities, Greater Cairo in Egypt, Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka and Beijing are some of the major cities with worst air quality.
How did WHO reach to this conclusion?
The global health organization studied more than 4300 cities around the world to ascertain the air quality.
The assessment is based on satellite data and modeling overlaid on the database of cities, a Reuters report noted.
Every year, 42 lakh people die due to outside air pollution globally. 13 lakh of these deaths occur in south Asia.
Learn from China
The WHO report has been categorical in noticing in the efforts of Chinese government to tackle air pollution.
Delhi Air Pollution | Source: ANI
Maria Neira, WHO’s head of public health, said:
“There is a big step at the government level (in China) declaring war on air pollution….We would be very happy if we would see a similar movement now in India which is one of the countries for which we are particularly concerned, although there are good initiatives which can be put in place quickly, still the levels are very high and we would like to see a similar decision and leadership.”
However, the WHO report was appreciative of India’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, under which, it said, 37 million women living below the poverty line have been provided with free LPG connections to support their switch to clean energy use.
