On Tuesday, 5 March , the PM2.5 level reached 202 in Delhi and the PM10 reached 191.
The index measures the presence of fine particulate matter known as PM2.5, a pollutant that can fester deep in the lungs and bloodstream of human beings.
Delhi: Major pollutants PM 2.5 at 202 in 'Poor' category and PM 10 at 191 in 'Moderate' category, in Lodhi Road area, according to the Air Quality Index (AQI) data. pic.twitter.com/1XerHlOsiS
— ANI (@ANI) March 5, 2019
A recent study revealed that India has 7 of its cities amongst the top 10 most polluted cities in the world.
The study demonstrated South Asia’s battle with deteriorating air quality and the economic toll its expected to take worldwide.
Air pollution due to crop residue burning in northern India is a leading risk factor of acute respiratory infections and causes an estimated economic loss of $30 billion annually, according to a new study.
Researchers from the U.S.-based International Food Policy Research Institute and partner institutes found that living in districts with air pollution from intense crop residue burning is a leading risk factor for acute respiratory infection, especially among children less than five years.
The study estimated the health and economic costs of crop residue burning in northern India for the first time and also found that the practice leads to an estimated economic loss of over $30 billion annually.
In five years, the economic loss due to burning of crop residue and firecrackers is estimated to be $190 billion, or nearly 1.7 per cent of India’s GDP, they said.
Gurugram is found to be the most polluted city in the world in 2018.Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Noida, Bhiwadi, Patna and Lucknow are also amongst others most polluted cities in the world
The alarming and grave situation is, according to the report, that air pollution is likely to cause the death of an estimated seven million lives globally in the next year while costing the world’s economy nearly $ 225 billion.
“This has enormous impacts, on our health and on our wallets,” Yeb Sano, executive director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia, said in a statement released with the figures. “In addition to human lives lost, there’s an estimated cost of $225 billion in lost labor, and trillions in medical costs”.
The only non-Indian city in the top five list is Faisalabad, Pakistan.
India, the world’s fastest-growing major economy, makes up 22 of the top 30 most polluted cities, with five in China, two in Pakistan and one in Bangladesh. India racks up health-care costs and productivity losses from pollution of as much as 8.5 percent of gross domestic product, according to the World Bank.