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India can no longer afford to treat air pollution as a seasonal or environmental issue — it is now a full-blown public health crisis claiming lives every day, Dr Soumya Swaminathan told News18 in an exclusive conversation. The former WHO Chief Scientist and public health expert has called for a National Clean Air Mission, warning that toxic air is damaging lungs, hearts and even developing brains. Swaminathan said air pollution has emerged as one of the top health risk factors in India, contributing to heart attacks, strokes, dementia and cancers. “It is cutting many years from our lives,” she said. She pointed out that India’s air quality standards remain far weaker than the WHO’s safe limits — 40 µg/m³ for PM2.5 compared with the global benchmark of 5 µg/m³ — and yet, “even that 40 is not achieved across much of northern India.” The former WHO scientist warned that prolonged exposure is driving a rise in lung cancer among non-smokers. “It’s like smoking twenty or thirty cigarettes a day,” she said, adding that infants and children are the most vulnerable. As a paediatrician, Swaminathan underlined that the damage begins even before birth, with studies showing a higher risk of low birth weight and premature babies among mothers exposed to high pollution levels. “It not only affects lung development but also impacts the brain,” she said. She added that indoor air pollution remains an overlooked hazard. “Many poor families still rely on firewood or dung for cooking because LPG refills are unaffordable,” she said. The result is chronic exposure for women and children inside their homes. According to the State of Global Air 2024 report, about 1.7 lakh Indian children under five died in 2021 due to air pollution — a figure Dr Swaminathan cited to show the scale of harm. “We are setting them up for a lifetime of ill health,” she said, warning that pollution-driven inflammation raises the risk of diabetes, neurological disorders and chronic lung disease. She stressed that investing in clean air is not just moral or medical, but economically smart. “The World Bank estimates every dollar invested gives six dollars in return,” she said. For immediate protection, she recommended air purifiers in schools, N95 masks on high-AQI days, and limiting outdoor activity for children when pollution peaks. But she warned these are only stopgap measures. “No one can isolate themselves from the air they breathe. The only solution is collective national action.” Swaminathan, a global expert in tuberculosis and HIV research, has urged the government to adopt a mission-mode, multi-sector National Clean Air Plan, backed by empowered governance and financing — a programme she compared to India’s successful large-scale drives such as the polio elimination campaign and Swachh Bharat Mission. “We achieved what looked impossible before — polio elimination and massive sanitation coverage — and we can do this for clean air too,” she said. She emphasised the need for cross-state and cross-border cooperation, saying the problem cannot be contained within city or state lines. “This has to be apolitical. Clean air is a fundamental right,” she said. “Investing in it can add up to 2 per cent to India’s GDP.” Ending on a note of guarded optimism, she said India has repeatedly shown it can meet ambitious health goals. “We can do it again,” she said. “If we act now, we can ensure every child in India breathes safe air.”
