Two different studies in recent times have confirmed the worst – that pollution shows no signs of letting up in India. Every minute, two lives are being lost. In fact, India has surpassed China in the death count due to pollution. The government is neither willing to take blame nor come up with punitive action. What’s the next step?
New estimates of the global burden of disease (GBD) released by the US-based Health Effect Institute (HEI) paint a grim picture for India. Globally, air pollution is estimated to cause more than 4.2 million early deaths – of these, 1.1 million deaths occur in India alone, more than a quarter of the global tally.
How India stands
India nearly equals China which has the highest number of early deaths due to PM2.5. Alarmingly, India now tops the list of highest number of early deaths due to ozone pollution. The rate of increase in early deaths in India is quite frightening.
Main cause
Air pollution is the leading environmental cause of death worldwide; as many as 92 per cent of the world's population lives in areas with polluted air.
The court’s take
Chiding the government for its inaction in removing hazardous waste dumps created in many municipal areas across the country, the Supreme Court sought an action report from the centre within four weeks. The court ticked off the government for being least concerned about citizens. Dumpyards have been posing severe threat to residents living closer to those areas. Have a look at some of the recent incidents:
Bengaluru lake fire
The Bellandur lake in Bengaluru caught fire once again. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained but from what reports tell us, garbage that's being dumped may have been set on fire by someone, or the chemicals in the lake could have ignited due to contact. Last year, the same lake had caught fire; thousands of dead fish surfaced in Ulsoor, another lake in the city.
Kodungaiyur dumpyard
A major fire raged for more than six hours at Kodungaiyur landfill in Chennai. Officials said the tree debris gathered after cyclone Vardah caught fire due to the release of methane gas from the garbage where the tree waste had been dumped.
Mulund dumpyard
According to an order by the Bombay high court, Brihan Mumbai Corporation (BMC) has been ordered to shut Mulund dumpyard by June 30, 2017. However, even before that order has been implemented the corporation is setting up another dumpyard in Airoli, close to a residential area. Meanwhile, residents of Mulund continue to request for shutting down the 44-year-old Mulund dumpyard as it poses severe health hazards.
Waste management is the key
With air pollution causing 1.1 million premature deaths in 2016, India also needs to get into mission mode like China. The airpocalypse is unmistakably upon us. And it isn't limited to the metros. The air has become toxic from Agra, Ahmedabad, and Amritsar to Gwalior, Patna and Raipur.
- Managing blazing mountains of garbage requires modern waste management practices and strategies.
- Controlling vehicular pollution means increasing the supply of reliable public transport at the earliest.
- Agricultural crop burning will stop when transporting crop stubble to biomass power plants becomes feasible for farmers.
Such solutions are not easy but achievable. The Centre and states must cooperate and strategise to deliver change on a comprehensive, nationwide scale.
"India cannot afford to remain complacent or on denial mode any more. With so many people dying early, falling ill and losing productive years due to particulate and ozone pollution, it is a state of health emergency. This demands nation-wide intervention to ensure stringent mitigation and a roadmap to meet clean air standards"
Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director-research and advocacy, Centre for Science and Environment
3 daily habits to heal the world
The world is being destroyed by every individual who is a part of it. Its care lies in the hands of us alone. These three daily habits will let you help the world – in a small way — each day.
Active learning: Learn more about things that make you feel happy. Learn as much from informative blogs, and creative writing. These instructional articles help you cut out your plastic use. They also simplify your life and provide practical, easy steps to be more effective at walking gentler on the planet. You may even learn about ways to reduce your carbon footprint.
Save and reuse wherever possible: Go beyond taking your bags to the grocery store. How about bringing your own reusable cup for coffee and drinking beverages throughout your work day. If you saved just two cups per day over the course of 40 years, you would save 48 trees and 3,600 pounds of wood. Use both sides of each sheet of paper that you use. If you do that, you can cut the amount of paper you need by half. Recycling newspapers and other paper items is crucial.
Set goals and track them: Formal goal settings can help you fulfill your long-term dreams. You may jot down doable goals every morning, which can include simple things like a day without any plastic or without a trash. Going without trash one day at a time could even add up to an entire year without trash.
