New Delhi: Delhi saw the highest number of deaths of children aged under five years due to outdoor air pollution in 2019, followed by Haryana and Punjab, asserts a policy communication by CAPHER India, which is a collaboration between IIT Delhi and AIIMS.
The Nov 2023 analysis by the Collaboration for Air Pollution and Health Effect Research, India (CAPHER), establishes that ambient air pollution affects children’s health and mortality. Yet to be put in public domain, the report is based on previous research and estimate models related to mortality due to ambient air pollution and seeks the intervention of policymakers.
“In 2019 alone, exposure to PM2.5 from ambient (outdoor) sources and use of solid fuel for cooking was linked to more than 16 lakh deaths in India; of this, more than 1.5 lakh deaths were in children under 14 years,” the analysis says. “Furthermore, air pollution was estimated to be the third largest risk factor for deaths in children among under five children in India. Children suffer disproportionately from the health impacts of air pollution, and the adverse effects they experience during childhood can result in impacts across the entire life course.”
It added that since 2010, Delhi, Punjab and Haryana have seen the highest toll of deaths of children under five related to outdoor PM2.5 exposures. Delhi topped with nearly 20% of the total deaths, followed by Haryana with just under 15%, Punjab with around 10%, and Uttar Pradesh with less than 10%.
“In India, air pollution is the second leading risk factor for deaths in children under 14 years; in 2019, 16% of all deaths in children under 14 were linked to air pollution,” the report says, adding that in the same period, states like Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and West Bengal saw arise in the percent of deaths related to outdoor PM2.5, while Goa, Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh were among those that saw a decline.
In states such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, more than 10% of the deaths of children under five are linked to the use of solid fuels for cooking in homes, the report noted.
However, it also reported that deaths caused by household air pollution dropped drastically, with Delhi being at the bottom of the list. “Less than 5% of all deaths under five are linked to household air pollution (HAP) in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab,” stated the report.
According to the experts associated with the report, while it is very difficult to pinpoint if a certain death was caused by environmental exposure, heat, etc., the model estimations were fair enough to take firm action against pollution. “These are all estimates, created from various studies. There are lots of confounders or factors that can modify the relation of exposure to pollution and mortality,” said Dr Hashal Salve, professor at AIIMS. “Confounders include age and gender and social factors like where the person is staying, green space, microenvironment, road traffic exposure.”
Salve said existing illnesses or something related to exposure at community levels also had to be considered. “Air pollution cannot impact everyone equally. So we need a study to follow participants for a longer term but this will be resource-intensive,” he said.
He added that since “the model estimates are fair enough” to prompt action on the matter at the policy level”, the communication suggests some actions such as incorporation of air pollution in health policymaking, working on social determinants of health such as the cost of cleaner fuel, etc.
