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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Odisha: Normalcy returns to violence-hit Malkangiri; internet services fully restored
Malkangiri (PTI): Normalcy returned to Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Monday, nearly a week after around 200 villages were damaged in violent clashes in a village, with the district administration fully restoring internet services, a senior official said.
Additional District Magistrate Bedabar Pradhan said internet services, suspended across the district on December 8 to curb the spread of rumours and misinformation following the clashes, were restored after the situation improved.
The suspension had been extended in phases till 12 noon on Monday.
The administration also withdrew prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita within a 10-km radius of MV-26 village, where arson incidents were reported on December 7 and December 8.
Though the violence was confined to two villages, tension had gripped the entire district, as the incident took the form of a clash between local tribals and Bengali settlers following the recovery of a headless body of a woman on December 4, officials said.
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The violence broke out after residents of Rakhelguda village allegedly set ablaze several houses belonging to Bengali residents, forcing hundreds to flee. The headless body of Lake Podiami (51), a woman from the Koya tribe, was recovered from the banks of the Poteru river on December 4, while her head was found six days later at a location about 15 km away.
Officials said the district administration held several rounds of discussions with representatives of the tribal and Bengali communities, following which both sides agreed to maintain peace.
Relief and rehabilitation work has since been launched at MV-26 village, with preliminary assessment pegging property damage at around Rs 3.8 crore.
A two-member ministerial team headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo visited the affected village, interacted with officials and locals, and submitted a report to the chief minister.
So far, 18 people have been arrested in connection with the violence, the officials said, adding that despite the withdrawal of prohibitory orders and restoration of internet services, security forces, including BSF and CRPF personnel, continue to be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
On Sunday, Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi visited MV-26 and neighbouring Rakhelguda villages, and held discussions with members of both communities as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and restore peace.
More than two lakh Bengali-speaking Bangladeshis were rehabilitated by the Centre in Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts in 1968, and they currently reside in 124 villages of Malkangiri.
