SOUTH ASIA – Pollution is dangerous for everyone living on planet Earth. The editors of the Lancet Medical Journal estimate that pollution causes the premature death of 9 million people every year. That’s three times the number who die from AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. It is also 15 times the number who die from war and all other violent crimes.
You might say that pollut𝗂on is an equal-opportunity killer. It is no respecter of age, gender, or ethnicity.
A report in the journal indicated, however, that “the vast majority” of pollution-related deaths occur in nations with the highest concentrations of poverty. That includes countries that have robust economies, including China, India, and even the United States.
You should know that:
- Three of the four countries with the highest pollut𝗂on-related death tolls are in South Asia.
- Those three nations (Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India) account for more than 3 million deaths annually.
- Pollution-related deaths in South Asian countries account for more than one-third of the annual, global pollut𝗂on-related deaths.
- Air pollution is the most dangerous and deadly of all forms of pollut𝗂on, able to reach broad populations with effects that include heart disease and lung cancer.
- Two countries in South Asia are among the 10 countries with the highest pollut𝗂on-related death rates per 100,000 people.
- 99% of the cities in South Asia cannot pass the Word Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for air quality.
- Twenty of the 30 worst cities for air pollut𝗂on are in South Asia, including nine of the top 10.
- The three highest-ranking national capital cities for air pollution are in South Asia.
- Infant mortality rates in South Asia – the highest in the world – can be directly tied to air and water pollut𝗂on.
- Over 80 percent of South Asia’s water supply is polluted.
The information about pollution, particularly pollut𝗂on in South Asia, is staggering. Now that you know some of the facts, pray that governments and NGOs will have the resources and the will to address and reduce the threat of pollut𝗂on that endangers so many millions of lives.
To read more news on South Asia on Missions Box, go here.
Sources:
- The Borgen Project, Top 10 Facts about Pollution in India
- India Celebrating, Facts about Air Pollution
- The Lancet, The Lancet Commission of pollution and health
- USA Today, Global pollution is the world’s biggest killer and a threat to survival of mankind, study finds
