India responsible for 70% of global air pollution deaths, finds Lancet Countdown report
New Delhi: The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change 2025 study conducted by University College London in collaboration with the World Health Organization says that, India accounts for about 70% of all global air pollution-related deaths, while air pollution kills approximately 2.5 million people worldwide.
According to the report, as a result of anthropogenic air pollution around 1.72 million people die each year in India, which is a 38% increase since 2010, specifically those who are exposed to PM2.5.
The report attributed 44% of India’s air pollution-related deaths, around 752,000, to fossil fuel use. It also noted that coal alone accounts for 394,000 deaths, largely from emissions produced by power plants. Additionally, petrol used in road transport contributes to 269,000 deaths.
PM2.5 exposure due to wildfire-related, results in an average of 10,200 deaths per year, between 2020 and 2024, making it a 28% rise compared to the 2003-2012 period.
The report noted that household pollution continues to be a major concern, particularly in rural India and mentioned that in 2022, it has resulted in an average of 113 deaths per 100,000 people, with rural mortality (125) notably higher than urban (99). The economic cost of premature deaths from outdoor air pollution was estimated at USD 339.4 billion, equivalent to 9.5% of India’s GDP that year.
The report also points to worsening heat exposure. Indians faced 50% more heatwave days in 2024, enduring 366 additional hours of heat stress, which led to an average loss of 419 labour hours per person per year—a 124% increase compared to 1990–99. This loss in productivity has been estimated at USD 194 billion in income loss.
The area experiencing at least one month of extreme drought every year has increased by 138%, from 14.1% in 1951-60 to 2015-24. Rising temperatures and humidity have also accelerated disease transmission. Dengue reproduction rates doubling over seven decades and Vibrio infections increasing by 46% in coastal areas compared to the 1982-2010 baseline.
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Red sandalwood worth Rs 1.75 cr seized, five held
Bengaluru (PTI): Red sandalwood worth Rs 1.75 crore have been seized by the city police, by cracking two cases of an inter-state smuggling operation, police said.
Five people have been arrested in this connection, they added.
Police intercepted the vehicles carrying the red sandalwood in Hulimavu police station and R T Nagar police station limits on their way from Andhra Pradesh, based on a tip-off.
The total worth of seized logs is Rs 1.75 crore, city police chief Seemanth Kumar Singh told reporters here on Thursday.
In both cases, the consignments were coming from Andhra Pradesh. While in one case it was going to Tamil Nadu, in the other, the destination was Bengaluru.
Four vehicles in total have been seized.
