Why air pollution isn't just a health issue; it's also a reflection of social inequality

By Raj Kumar Sinha* 

Air pollution has become the most silent yet deadly public health crisis of our time. In cities and villages, invisible toxic particles suspended in the air, such as industrial smoke, vehicle emissions, ash from thermal power plants, and domestic fuel smoke, are taking a heavy toll on people's breathing. The most worrying fact is that people are falling ill without any noise. Its pain is neither immediately visible nor its impact felt, yet its ability to erode the body from within is extremely rapid. Today, the poison in the air is not just an environmental crisis, but a slow, ongoing assault on human health.

Addressing air pollution is no longer just an environmental necessity; it has become a public health emergency. Air pollution isn't just a health issue; it's also a reflection of social inequality. The most polluted air is breathed by those least responsible for it: poor families, roadside dwellers, communities near industrial areas, and working laborers. Respiratory diseases like asthma, COPD, coughs, and bronchitis are becoming common household complaints. Their impact on the heart and brain is even more devastating. Fine particles in the air dissolve into the bloodstream, increasing the risk of heart attack, high blood pressure, and stroke. Children are the hardest hit by air pollution. Their developing lungs cannot tolerate polluted air, leading to lifelong lung capacity loss.

Elderly people and pregnant women are also at high risk because their weakened immune systems are unable to effectively fight the tiny toxic particles in the air.

According to the World Health Organization's Department of Climate, Environment and Health, air pollution causes approximately 9 million deaths worldwide each year. A Lancet report published in November estimated that 1.7 million deaths in India were due to air pollution in 2022. This number is 38 percent higher than in 2010. Fossil fuels are responsible for 750,000 of these deaths. Coal alone caused approximately 400,000 deaths. Globally, 2.52 million deaths were recorded due to fossil fuel-related air pollution. These findings come at a time when Delhi and much of North India are once again gripped by dense winter smog. Delhi's Air Quality Index has crossed 360. PM 2.5 levels in many areas have been recorded 20 times higher than the World Health Organization's safe limit.

Haryana has seen an increase in cases of premature delivery due to air pollution.

According to Dr. Pushpa Dahiya, Head of the Gynecology Department of PGI Rohtak, 13,500 deliveries have taken place in a year.

Of these, 18 percent (2,430 babies) were born prematurely. Pollution has been cited as the main cause. A study by the National Institute of Occupational Health on 1,202 people living near coal mines found that

Lung function was abnormal in 14.3 percent of workers, 10 percent of supervisory staff, and 7.8 percent of local residents. X-rays also revealed cases of lung fibrosis.

India has several laws to control air pollution. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, empowers the Central and State Pollution Control Boards to monitor and take action. The National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), launched in 2019, is the country's largest central-level effort, aiming to reduce PM 10 levels by 40 percent in 131 cities. However, only 68 percent (Rs 7,594 crore) of the ₹11,211 crore released between 2019–2025 has been utilized.

According to the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board's 2024–25 report, the air quality of 29 district headquarters in the state has worsened compared to last year. This includes "clean cities" like Indore. The AQI is also continuously increasing in tribal-dominated districts like Alirajpur, Dindori, Umaria, Betul. The Central Pollution Control Board has declared 131 cities in the country as non-attainment cities. Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Ujjain, Sagar and Dewas of Madhya Pradesh are included in this list.

The state government has announced the revival of the Nagar Van Yojana to reduce pollution in cities, under which ₹500 crore will be spent over five years. Meanwhile, a proposal to cut 27,000 trees in Bhopal was canceled after protests. There were protests over the cutting of 8,000 trees for the Ayodhya bypass extension. The High Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) have had to intervene in cases of illegal or unlawful tree felling in Jabalpur, Sagar, Raisen, and Mandla. These examples demonstrate that environmental balance is being consistently neglected in the blind pursuit of development.

By rampantly expanding industry, urbanization, and consumption, we have polluted air, water, and soil. Air pollution is no longer a future crisis, but a present-day one. If Parliament, the government, and society don't treat it as a health emergency, we will pay the price with our very lives.

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*Bargi Dam Displaced and Affected Association