The authors of the February 2015 study tha
t found air pollution reduced life expectancy for Indians by about 3 years write about how with the right policies, compliance standards, and more, India can reduce pollution without high costs and thereby improve citizen’s health. “We’ve found that improved compliance with Indian air quality standards for airborne particulate matter would save 2.1 billion life-years for more than half of the population exposed to this deadly pollution…”
“We all breathe the same air. Air pollution harms us, whether we are poor or rich; whether we walk, pedal a bike, drive a car, or sit in the back seat to be driven. It seeks out even the most powerful, as is evidenced by the notorious asthmatic cough of Delhi’s own chief minister. Yet, India does not have to tolerate this threat. Actions to improve monitoring, make polluters pay, and put a price on emissions can be implemented in cost-effective ways so that they are compatible with the economic growth that is vital for India’s future. Great countries and cities throughout history have never stalled by trying in earnest to cut air pollution.” The Indian Express. Read it on delhiair.org.
(Opinion piece by Michael Greenstone, Milton Friedman professor in economics and director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago; Rohini Pande, Mohammed Kamal professor of public policy and director of the Evidence for Policy Design initiative at Harvard University’s Centre for International Development; Nicholas Ryan, Assistant professor of economics at Yale Universit; and Anant Sudarshan, Executive director of the Energy Policy Institute at Chicago’s India office.
delhiair.org - be informed and active about air quality in New Delhi, India 