Slashing pollution levels across the country by up to 30% can substantially reduce the burden of ailments such as heart disease, diabetes, anaemia and low birth weight among women and children, said a new assessment released Tuesday by IIT-Delhi and Climate Trends, a research-based consulting and capacity building initiative.
Data on disease prevalence from National Family Health Survey–5, Indian epidemiological studies on air pollution’s impact on health, and air quality data was used by IIT-D and Climate Trends to launch a ‘health benefit assessment dashboard’, which projects the co-benefits of reducing air pollution on disease prevalence across 641 districts.
Since the dashboard was created using 2011 district boundaries, only 641 districts were included. For the particulate matter (PM) 2.5 pollution values, IIT-D used satellite data.
After the assessment assumed a uniform 30% reduction in PM 2.5 pollution across these districts, it showed that heart disease prevalence among women could decline by 3%-10% if air pollution was slashed in line with the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) targets — reduce PM 10 levels by up to 40% or achieve national ambient air quality standards by 2025-26. The most pronounced improvements would be seen in Assam, Jammu & Kashmir, and Nagaland.
“The largest co-benefits are concentrated in northern and eastern states, where high levels of air pollution and large populations create an especially urgent case for action. Yet even in states and UTs with lower baseline prevalence or smaller populations, meaningful health improvements are observed,” the study said.
Baseline prevalence refers to the prevalence of diseases across the country as per NFHS-5 data
Though NCAP covers only 131 cities, the assessment used the targets outlined in it as a reference point to project the benefits of cleaner air on health burden across the districts.
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The assessment showed that overall reductions in diabetes prevalence are projected to range between 8% and 25% with the highest benefits in Delhi, UP, Bihar, Assam and Haryana.
On hypertension, the assessment showed that the disease could decline meaningfully in the range of 2% to 8% if air pollution declined. “The largest improvements are found in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Assam, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh,” the assessment showed.
Among children, the analysis highlighted that cleaner air could lead to decline in prevalence of lower respiratory infections, low birth weight and anaemia. The benefits, the analysis said, could be most pronounced in regions with high baseline prevalence and severe air pollution, such as the Indo-Gangetic plains and eastern states.
“These findings underscore the urgent need to prioritize air quality interventions, as cleaner air not only improves the environment but also translates directly into measurable and widespread public health gains,” the assessment said.
