No conclusive data available to establish direct correlation of death exclusively due to air pollution, says government

The Minister, however, said air pollution is one of the many factors affecting respiratory ailments and associated diseases.

There is no conclusive data available to establish a direct correlation of death or disease exclusively due to air pollution, Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar told the Lok Sabha on December 9, 2022.

The Minister, however, said air pollution is one of the many factors affecting respiratory ailments and associated diseases.

“Health is impacted by a number of factors which includes food habits, occupational habits, socio-economic status, medical history, immunity, heredity, etc., of the individuals apart from the environment,” Ms. Pawar said in a written reply.

"There is no conclusive data available to establish a direct correlation of death/disease exclusively due to air pollution.

"While air pollution is known to be one of the aggravating factors for many respiratory ailments, specific information on the number of deaths exclusively due to air pollution is not available," Ms. Pawar said.

Ms. Pawar listed several steps taken by the government to address air pollution issues such as Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) which aims to safeguard the health of women and children by providing them with a clean cooking fuel – LPG, Swachh Bharat Mission to clean up streets, roads and infrastructure of India's cities, smaller towns, and rural areas. Swachh Hawa is an integral component of Swachh Bharat, the Minister said.

She referred to the Central Sector Scheme on 'Promotion of Agricultural Mechanization for in-situ management of Crop Residue in the Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and NCT of Delhi', agricultural machines and equipment for in-situ crop residue management are promoted with 50% subsidy to the individual farmers and 80 per cent subsidy for establishment of Custom Hiring Centres.