Air pollution is one of the leading threats to child health, accounting for almost 1 in 10 deaths in children under five years of age. In 2016, approximately 6 lakh children died due to acute lower respiratory infections caused by polluted air, as per a report by the World Health Organisation. WHO in its report states that on a daily basis, around 93 per cent of the world’s children under […]

Urban air pollution, mostly from vehicles, is associated with an increased risk of dementia, according to research published Wednesday. The link remained even after heavy drinking, smoking and other well established risk factors for dementia were ruled out, the researchers reported in medical journal BMJ Open. Worldwide, about seven percent of people over 65 suffer from Alzheimer’s or some form of dementia, a percentage that rises to 40 percent above […]

Toxic air takes a massive toll on respiratory organs but a new study has found that it could also lead to chronic kidney diseases. According to a study, conducted by University of Michigan, harmful particles in the air can have a detrimental impact on how the kidney functions. It claims that the ill-effects could be on the lines of smoking. “Similar to smoking, air pollution contains harmful toxins that can […]

IN THE past 350 years the Taj Mahal has successfully contended with attacks, robberies and neglect. But the stunning marble mausoleum in Agra, northern India, is struggling to cope with its modern-day enemies: toxic air and filthy water. Commissioned by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, in memory of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, the Taj once had a pearly white exterior. This has changed, in part if not in whole, […]

Delhi Air Pollution: The Problem Of Interpretation Delhi Air pollution has reached alarming levels. The headlines in the past one week have been primarily about it. You come across all kinds of possible measures from increasing parking fees to cloud seeding to even sprinkling water from the sky and what not. Almost every year, with the onset of winter, Delhi has to tackle with this additional burden of severe smog. […]

More than 5.5 million people worldwide die prematurely every year due to household and outdoor air pollution, and India and China together account for 55 percent of these deaths, new research has found. About 1.6 million people died of air pollution in China and 1.4 million died in India in 2013, the researchers said. The international team of researchers from India, China, Canada and the US estimated that despite efforts […]

The Union government recently announced a list of 98 cities that will be developed as smart cities. The need for Indian cities to became smart becomes more important in a report published by World Health Organization( WHO) in December 2014 says that 13 of the top 20 most polluted cities are from India. India which is a developing economy and second most populous country obviously needs to improve its air […]

Let me start with a big thank you to all our patrons and well wishers for their heartfelt support to our small Navratri Women Special Series. In keeping with the norm, we are highlighting issues on women, for women and by women. Today’s issue is perhaps not really women related but surely what every woman worries about. Yes I am talking about the scourge of Pollution. As the festival season […]

New Delhi: The government on Thursday said that more than 35,000 people had died due to acute respiratory infections (ARI) across India in close to 10 years. The Union environment ministry had in the past maintained that there was no “conclusive evidence” that links air pollution to respiratory diseases. Sharing details of air pollution-linked deaths, the environment ministry also informed the Parliament that more than 2.6 crore of such cases […]