2023-08-30 16:30:40
The Indian capital New Delhi, where the heads of state and government of the 20 most influential countries will meet in nine days, has become the dirtiest city in the world. Air pollution, which is increasing year after year, has reached new highs. People who spend their lives in the capital would lose 11.9 years compared to their life expectancy estimated by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago. Even compared to India’s guidelines, people in the capital lose 8.5 years of their lives from breathing the polluted air.
Christopher Hein
Business correspondent for South Asia/Pacific based in Singapore.
The WHO recommends air pollution that remains below 5 micrograms of harmful PM2.5 pollutants for one cubic meter of breathing air. The Indians themselves reckon with 40 micrograms. In the year 2021 examined, the true value in Delhi was 126.5 micrograms. In the Corona year 2020, when numerous activities were suspended, the value was almost 108.
In the Delhi region, an estimated 18 million people live under the unhealthy conditions caused by industry, transport and coal-fired power plants. It is undisputed that living conditions have deteriorated sharply: The unregulated economic growth of between 5 and 7 percent means that the bad air in 2021 cost people almost ten years of their actual life expectancy. It’s been almost two years now. The respected newspaper “The Times of India” speaks of “poisoned air” and a “lost battle”.
Till Fähnders, New Delhi Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 7 Till Fähnders, Singapore Published/Updated: Recommendations: 4 Reinhard Bingener and Till Fähnders Published/Updated: Recommendations: 30
Across India, the figure is ten times the WHO recommendation. In South Asia, which has been developing rapidly in recent years, air pollution measured in this way rose by almost 10 percent annually between 2013 and 2021. In Bangladesh, pollution increased by an average of 12.4 percent, the scientists have calculated.
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