Air pollution in India
[5] The main contributors to India's particulate air pollution include industrial and vehicular emissions, construction dust and debris, dependence on thermal power for electricity, waste burning, and use of wood and dung by low-income and rural households for cooking and heating.
Emissions come from vehicles and industry, whereas in rural areas, much of the pollution stems from biomass burning for cooking and keeping warm.
In autumn and spring months, large scale crop residue burning in agriculture fields – a cheaper alternative to mechanical tilling – is a major source of smoke, smog and particulate pollution.
[16] According to a Lancet study, nearly 1.67 million deaths and an estimated loss of US$28.8 billion worth of output were India's prices for worsening air pollution in 2019.
[17] Fuel wood and biomass burning is the primary reason for near-permanent haze and smoke observed above rural and urban India, and in satellite pictures of the country.
Some reports, including one by the World Health Organization, claim 300,000 to 400,000 people die of indoor air pollution and carbon monoxide poisoning in India because of biomass burning and use of chullhas.
From the most recent available nationwide study, India used 148.7 million tonnes coal replacement worth of fuel-wood and biomass annually for domestic energy use.
India's national average annual per capita consumption of fuel wood, agricultural waste and biomass cakes was 206 kilogram coal equivalent.
Traditional fuel (fuelwood, crop residue and dung cake) dominates domestic energy use in rural India and accounts for about 90% of the total.
Also ignored are the reduced life of vehicle engine and higher maintenance costs, particularly if the taxi, auto-rickshaw or truck is being rented for a daily fee.
Adulterated fuel increases tailpipe emissions of hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and particulate matter (PM).
Kerosene is more difficult to burn than gasoline, its addition results in higher levels of HC, CO and PM emissions even from catalyst-equipped cars.
[31] India emits about 3 gigatonnes (Gt) CO2eq of greenhouse gases each year; about two and a half tons per person, which is less than the world average.
[33] The climate change performance index of India ranks eighth among 63 countries which account for 92% of all GHG emissions in the year 2021.
[34] Temperature rises on the Tibetan Plateau are causing Himalayan glaciers to retreat, threatening the flow rate of the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Yamuna and other major rivers.
A 2007 World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) report states that the Indus River may run dry for the same reason.
Exposure to particulate matter for a long time can lead to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases such as asthma, bronchitis, COPD, lung cancer and heart attack.
Over a million Indians die prematurely every year due to air pollution, according to the non-profit Health Effects Institute.
[46] Ambient air pollution in India is estimated to cause 670,000 deaths annually and particularly aggravates respiratory and cardiovascular conditions including chronic bronchitis, lung cancer and asthma.
The AQI of Delhi was placed under the "severe-plus category" when it touched 574, by the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research.
