NEW DELHI: The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) and climate advocacy organisation Climate Trends have launched an evidence-based tool called the Health Benefit Assessment Dashboard, demonstrating that a 30 per cent reduction in PM2.5 air pollution levels, compared to 2024 projections, could significantly decrease the prevalence of diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, pulmonary diseases, and anaemia nationwide by one-third.
Currently, the nationwide disease prevalence stands at 4.87 per cent, according to the 5th National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5). If the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) target of a 30 per cent reduction in PM2.5 levels is achieved, this prevalence could drop to 3.09 per cent.
The dashboard establishes a connection between long-term exposure to PM2.5 and critical health outcomes for women and children across 641 districts in India, using NFHS-5 data.
It shows that reaching the NCAP target would substantially reduce disease prevalence across the country, including hypertension, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), anaemia, and diabetes among women of reproductive age (15 to 49 years).
Additionally, it would help reduce instances of anaemia, low birth weight, and lower respiratory infections among children under the age of five.
A pioneering tool, the dashboard was launched during a consultation workshop aimed at initiating discussions about air quality and public health as the monsoon season officially comes to an end.
Dr Virinder Sharma, a technical member of the Commission for Air Quality Management in Delhi NCR (CAQM), emphasised that the detrimental health effects caused by air pollution often go unnoticed, leading to an underestimation of its impact.
"There’s no 'death certificate' for air pollution," said Sharma. "Losses are occurring, whether in Delhi NCR hospitals, workplaces, or through shortened lifespans, but the crisis remains silent, invisible, and diffuse. It is easy to underestimate unless it is connected to people’s lived realities."
The burden of air pollution is particularly high in densely populated states, especially in the north and east of the country. Therefore, any reduction in PM2.5 levels would benefit the Indo-Gangetic region significantly.
According to the analysis, among women of reproductive age, the current prevalence of diabetes is 1.7 per cent, which could decrease to 1.4 per cent if the PM2.5 reduction targets are met.
The decline in the prevalence of lower respiratory infections, low birth weight, and anaemia is most pronounced among children in regions that already experience high levels of severe air pollution, particularly in the Indo-Gangetic Plain and eastern states.
The clean air scenario was modelled assuming a 30 per cent reduction in PM2.5 concentrations based on NCAP’s 2024 target, with the aim of helping policymakers and researchers access real-world health impact data as the severe air pollution months approach.
“Over the last 10 years, as air quality became more of a scientific issue and increasingly linked with aspects like climate change, it has somewhat moved away from its social dimension as a public health concern primarily,” said Aarti Khosla, director of Climate Trends. “I think bringing it back to where it belongs is critical,” she added.
Experts highlight a communication failure between researchers and both policymakers and the general public. "We realised that while we are conducting important research, this science is not always communicated to policymakers effectively, and is often not conveyed to citizens at all," said Prof Sagnik Dey, chair professor in Policy Studies at the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences, IIT Delhi.