Fossil fuel air pollution costs India 5.4% of GDP, lead to 9.81 lakh preterm births

By A Representative
Pointing towards the economic cost of air pollution, a recent report by top international environmental NGO Greenpeace has said that China, the United States and India “bear the highest costs from fossil fuel air pollution worldwide, at an estimated US$900 billion, US$600 billion and US$150 billion (Rs 10.7 lakh crore) per year, respectively.”
Titled “Toxic Air: The Price of Fossil Fuels”, the report states, of premature deaths attributed to air pollution globally, almost one-third were attributable to exposure (while outdoors) to air pollution from residential and commercial energy, which is the principal source of air pollution-related premature deaths in India and China.
According to the report, approximately 2 million (1,032,000–2,093,000) preterm births worldwide are attributed to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure as a result of fossil fuel use. Of these, an estimated 350,000 (184,000–367,000) are in China; 14,000 (6,700–14,500) are in South Africa; 981,000 (517,000–1,031,000) are in India; and 11,000 (6,000–12,000) are in Thailand.
PM2.5 concentrations, the most harmful to human health, are defined as ambient airborne particles which measure up to 2.5 microns in size. Their microscopic size allow particles to enter the blood stream via the respiratory system and travel throughout the body, causing far-reaching health effects, including asthma, lung cancer and heart disease, say experts.
Noting that the cost of fossil fuel air pollution equates to a large percentage of many nations’ GDP, the report says, the projected cost of fossil fuel air pollution as a percentage of GDP is greatest in China, where it equates to 6.6%, followed by Bulgaria, Hungary, Ukraine, Serbia, Belarus, Romania and Bangladesh. where it is “greater than 5%”.
Estimating the cost of fossil fuel air pollution in India at 5.4% of GDP, the report says, “By comparison, it is 3.4% (2.2-5.1%) and 2.5% (1.8-3.7%) in South Korea and Japan respectively”, the report says.

“Another source of economic costs is that approximately 350,000 new cases of child asthma each year are linked to NO2, a by-product of fossil fuel combustion”, the report states, adding, “As a result, around 1,285,000 more children in India live with asthma linked to fossil fuel pollution.”
Further pointing out that “exposure to pollution from fossil fuels also leads to around 49 crore days of work absence due to illness”, Minwoo Son, Clean Air Campaigner at Greenpeace East Asia says, “This is a problem that we know how to solve, by transitioning to renewable energy sources, phasing out diesel and petrol cars, and building public transport. We need to take into account the real cost of fossil fuels, not just for our rapidly heating planet, but also for our health.”

Moving energy generation from fossil fuels to renewables would help to prevent premature deaths and vast savings in health costs

“The country spends around 1.28% of GDP on health while air pollution from burning fossil fuels costs an estimated 5.4% of India’s GDP. This year the central government allocated only Rs 69,000 crore for the health sector in the union budget. This makes it clear that as a country we must fix our priority and stop burning fossil fuels which are harming our health and economy both,” adds Avinash Chanchal, Senior Campaigner at Greenpeace India.
Regretting that coal fired power plants in India have repeatedly missed the emission deadline set by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Chanchal demands “strict action” against non-compliance of thermal power plants, insisting, “The government must ensure the construction of new coal-fired power plants is halted and existing plants must be shut down in phases.”
“Moving our energy generation sector from fossil fuels to renewables would help to prevent premature deaths and vast savings in health costs. A just energy transition to renewable energy is feasible, and we can’t afford to wait any longer. Government and fossil fuel companies need to take action now,” he believes.

Comments

The curious case of multiple entries of a female voter of Maharashtra: What ECI's online voter records reveal

By Venkatesh Nayak* Cyberspace is agog with data, names and documents which question the reliability of the electoral rolls prepared by the electoral bureaucracy in Maharashtra prior to the General Elections conducted in 2024. One such example of deep dive probing has brought to the surface, the name of one female voter in the 132-Nalasopara (Gen) Vidhan Sabha Constituency in Maharashtra. Nalasopara is part of the Palghar (ST) Lok Sabha constituency. This media report claims that this individual's name figures multiple times in the voter list of the same constituency.

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

1857 War of Independence... when Hindu-Muslim separatism, hatred wasn't an issue

"The Sepoy Revolt at Meerut", Illustrated London News, 1857 By Shamsul Islam* Large sections of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs unitedly challenged the greatest imperialist power, Britain, during India’s First War of Independence which began on May 10, 1857; the day being Sunday. This extraordinary unity, naturally, unnerved the firangees and made them realize that if their rule was to continue in India, it could happen only when Hindus and Muslims, the largest two religious communities were divided on communal lines.

Spirit of leadership vs bondage: Of empowered chairman of 100-acre social forestry coop

By Gagan Sethi* This is about Khoda Sava, a young Dalit belonging to the Vankar sub-caste, who worked as a bonded labourer in a village near Vadgam in Banskantha district of North Gujarat. The year was 1982. Khoda had taken a loan of Rs 7,000 from the village sarpanch, a powerful landlord doing money-lending as his side business. Khoda, who had taken the loan for marriage, was landless. Normally, villagers would mortgage their land if they took loan from the sarpanch. But Khoda had no land. He had no option but to enter into a bondage agreement with the sarpanch in order to repay the loan. Working in bondage on the sarpanch’s field meant that he would be paid Rs 1,200 per annum, from which his loan amount with interest would be deducted. He was also obliged not to leave the sarpanch’s field and work as daily wager somewhere else. At the same time, Khoda was offered meal once a day, and his wife job as agricultural worker on a “priority basis”. That year, I was working as secretary...

Ground reality: Israel would a remain Jewish state, attempt to overthrow it will be futile

By NS Venkataraman* Now that truce has been arrived at between Israel and Hamas for a period of four days and with release of a few hostages from both sides, there is hope that truce would be further extended and the intensity of war would become significantly less. This likely “truce period” gives an opportunity for the sworn supporters and bitter opponents of Hamas as well as Israel and the observers around the world to introspect on the happenings and whether this war could have been avoided. There is prolonged debate for the last several decades as to whom the present region that has been provided to Jews after the World War II belong. View of some people is that Jews have been occupants earlier and therefore, the region should belong to Jews only. However, Christians and those belonging to Islam have also lived in this regions for long period. While Christians make no claim, the dispute is between Jews and those who claim themselves to be Palestinians. In any case...

Bangladesh alternative more vital for NE India than Kaladan project in Myanmar

By Mehjabin Bhanu* There has been a recent surge in the number of Chin refugees entering Mizoram from the adjacent nation as a result of airstrikes by the Myanmar Army on ethnic insurgents and intense fighting along the border between India and Myanmar. Uncertainty has surrounded India's Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport project, which uses Sittwe port in Myanmar, due to the recent outbreak of hostilities along the Mizoram-Myanmar border. Construction on the road portion of the Kaladan project, which runs from Paletwa in Myanmar to Zorinpui in Mizoram, was resumed thanks to the time of relative calm during the intermittent period. However, recent unrest has increased concerns about missing the revised commissioning goal dates. The project's goal is to link northeastern states with the rest of India via an alternate route, using the Sittwe port in Myanmar. In addition to this route, India can also connect the region with the rest of India through Assam by using the Chittagon...

How AMU student politics prioritises Islamist ideologies rather than addressing campus-specific concerns

By Yanis Iqbal* In his recent piece titled "Unmasking the Power Struggles of Soqme Teachers Behind the AMU Students’ Agitation," Mohammad Sajjad, professor of modern and contemporary Indian history at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), has has approached the recent protests against fee increases at AMU with a skeptical eye. He portrays them not as a pure, student-led reaction to financial burdens, but as possibly intertwined with deeper institutional rivalries. While recognizing that the university administration faces ongoing demands from the government and the University Grants Commission (UGC) to boost self-generated revenue via fee adjustments, he highlights a key shortfall: neither the administration nor the protesters have shared clear, comparative data on fee structures or their rationale.

A wake-up call for Uttarakhand: The human cost of unchecked development, environmental destruction

By Dr. Gurinder Kaur* On August 5, 2025, a cloudburst in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district caused significant destruction. A sudden surge in the Kheer Ganga river's flow triggered a flash flood that hit the town of Dharali, completely destroying 40–50 buildings and houses and claiming five lives. More than 100 people are still missing, including nine army personnel. Due to heavy rainfall and landslides, traffic has come to a complete halt on 163 roads and five national highways in the state. Rescue teams are continuously assisting people in the affected areas. A large number of pilgrims heading to Gangotri usually stay in Dharali, which is why there are many hotels, restaurants, and homestays in the town.

NREGA Sangharsh Morcha demands rollback of NMMS App, restoration of workers’ rights

By A Representative The NREGA Sangharsh Morcha (NSM) has strongly demanded the immediate revocation of the National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS) App used for recording workers’ attendance under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). Citing the Union Ministry of Rural Development’s (MoRD) July 8, 2025 directive acknowledging widespread misuse and discrepancies in the NMMS App, NSM accused the government of admitting to deep-rooted corruption while continuing to impose a failed digital system.

Search This Blog