Pollution is significantly reducing life expectancy in India – here's what needs to be done, say researchers

This article first appeared in BW Healthcare World.

It’s no secret that the increase in air pollution has taken an extraordinary toll on both the quality and longevity of life in India. Nine of the ten most polluted cities in the world are in India. And, according to a recent report from the Energy Policy Institute of the University of Chicago (EPIC), air pollution shortens human life expectancy in Delhi by ten years. This report also confirms that in addition to the Indo-Gangetic plain being the most polluted region in the world, with its air quality failing to meet World Health Organisation guidelines, the average Indian will lose five years of life expectancy as a result.

The Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) shows that particulate matter (PM) pollution reduces life expectancy more than communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, and behavioural killers, such as cigarette smoking, and, in some cases, even war.

An Indian economy that doesn’t produce polluting emissions is the only way forward. A zero emissions India must be treated with the same sense of urgency and mass mobilization as would a respiratory pathogen threatening our survival, because that’s what this requires.

But decarbonising India cannot happen in a vacuum. Reaching zero emissions requires a three-pronged, comprehensive plan for bridging the public and private sectors. This must also be accepted by leaders in sustainability, investment and finance, innovation and technology, healthcare and public health, government and policy, construction, engineering and architecture.

First, we must educate the community on why universal, robust and measured initiatives on the part of organizations, both large and small, to systematically reduce carbon across every facet of their operations under their environmental social and governance (ESG) programmes is the single greatest tool for accelerating a zero emissions future in this country and around the globe.

We must create an ecosystem that supports ESG implementation. And it’s also our responsibility to explain what we expect the impact of our decarbonization efforts to have on India and the world’s collective life expectancy and overall quality of life.

Second, we must consider integrating ESG practices through the lens of human rights. This must be done with a calculated, methodical campaign that navigates the cold, hard truth that existential crises are most often tackled first with economic arguments. Indians have a human right to healthy air, and they deserve an actionable strategy that reflects that. With 95 cities failing to meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards, we have a long way to go. If we lived in a utopia where problems were solved with the press of a button, the right to live a life uninhibited by preventable pollution would seem straightforward, but we have to recognize that it is not this easy.

India’s national strategy aims to reduce PM emissions by as much as 30 per cent by 2024. But, a report from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, finds that a total of 132 cities, up from 102 cities since the 2019 inception of the National Clean Air Programme, have pollution levels below national standards. So, while we must recognise that perfect can’t be the enemy of good, we must be truthful about the fact that we are going from bad to worse. Then, we must acknowledge that accelerating zero emissions is the most effective and efficient way of reversing that reality and ensuring Indians experience the benefits of clean air and the right to live longer, healthier lives now and in the future.

If we want business, tech and policy leaders to understand and act on the facts we have about life expectancy, we must address their work-life expectations as well. In other words, we need to start by also speaking about years lost in labour. Lost labour income due to fatal illness from PM 2.5 pollution in 2017 was between $30 and $78 billion, equivalent to between 0.3 per cent and 0.9 per cent of the country’s GDP.

Third, and finally, this death sentence must be met with the digital transformation of our climate actions. We must rapidly embrace emerging technologies in the name of removing redundancies, offering predictive analytics, securing data and improving business decision-making. And, we have to do all of this while constantly reminding ourselves that the end of each decision must be accountability to one another. It must be, first and foremost, about the health, well-being and longevity of the Indian people.

With COVID-19 and the growing climate crises looming simultaneously, our hope is that Indian leaders will focus on these priorities and finally come to terms with the compounding challenges many in positions of authority and resources have long turned a blind eye to. The present and future of India and the world is at stake, we can no longer afford to leave these life and death decisions around decarbonisation, quite literally up in the air.