19.3% drop in particulate pollution in 2022 adds 51 days to life expectancy

India recorded a significant 19.3 per cent drop in particulate pollution in 2022 compared to 2021, the second-highest reduction in the world after Bangladesh, adding an average of 51 days to the life expectancy of every citizen, according to a new report.

The annual report, "Air Quality Life Index" 2024, by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC) also said that Indians are likely to lose 3.6 years of life expectancy if the country fails to meet the World Health Organisation's annual PM2.5 concentration standard of 5 micrograms per cubic metre.

The researchers attributed the decline in particulate levels in India and other South Asian countries primarily to favourable meteorological conditions and a reduced number of thermal inversions -- when a layer of warm air traps cooler air near the ground, causing pollution to build up.

PM2.5 concentrations in India in 2022 were around 9 micrograms per cubic metre, 19.3 per cent lower than 2021.

The most significant ..